


Magnificent.....8?

by SisterWine



Category: The Magnificent Seven (TV)
Genre: Blind Love - Freeform, Don't Judge An Outlaw, F/M, Follow Your Heart, Let's Ride, Western
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-08
Updated: 2015-12-27
Packaged: 2018-04-13 16:46:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 53,273
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4529514
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SisterWine/pseuds/SisterWine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Disclaimer: The Magnificent Seven is owned by MGM Home Entertainment, distributed by Fox and a product of the Mirisch Corporation. I make no claim to them or the name, Magnificent Seven. This is strictly for entertainment and fictional reading. Sheriff Charlie Drake, Jesse McCall/Matthew Burdett and Lyla Drake are the sole property of myself. I do NOT buy, sell, trade or plagerise my fiction to or for anyone. sisterwine75@hotmail.com. I've made no profit for this story except for the satisfaction of writing it. No harm intended to the series or companies.<br/>Summary: Chris and the gang help a Utah town sheriff search for his kidnapped sister and the young outlaw that abducted her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Echo, Utah Territory

Two figures made their way down the dark trail of her brother's ranch. They headed towards the stable, where his horse, Delby, waited with a small wagon and spare saddle strapped to her. Cautiously, they stepped over branches and weeds and wildflowers. A breeze blew up dust and ruffled the skirt of her dress while he held her hand and lead the way. Carefully and easily, he guided her down the trail.

"I'm going to fall, Jesse." Her head bent and free hand outstretched as if grasping for an invisible rail, forsaking the gentle hand that held her other. Long brown hair whipped in the wind, around her face, startling her even more. "Jesse," she whispered shakily. Her blue skirt snagged shortly on a stray twig and she stopped to yank it out of its grasp.

The young man paused and turned back to look at her. "I've got you. You won't fall. Stay with me, Lyla. We're almost there." Stripping himself of his tan duster, he placed it around her shoulders and calmly guided her the remaining few yards to the stables. Shaggy blond hair blew into his eyes but never let him lose his way in the darkness. They had almost reached the building when he stopped her from moving. A lantern had been lit and waited for them, hanging on a nail by the door. A tall man stood just outside of the glow, shotgun poised to apprehend his prisoners. Staring down the long double barrels of the Sheriff's Henry, Jesse stepped in front of Lyla and did his best to hide her from the pursuer. The hammer cocked and Jesse swallowed nervously. "You don't wanna do this, Sheriff. Just let us go." Jesse reached a shaky hand in the direction of his colt, that rested on his right hip.

"Don't tell me what to do, boy. You lay that six-shooter on the ground and back away from her." Holding the rifle to eye level and aiming it between Jesse's big blue eyes. Sheriff Charles Drake cocked his head and looked around the younger man standing between he and his younger sister. "Lyla, you alright?"

Lyla heard the familiar voice and placed her hands on Jesse's shoulders. "Charlie?" Cursing the darkness in her eyes, Lyla struggled to move around her older lover but Jesse was not letting it happen. "Charlie, go away. I'm a grown woman, now. I want to leave with him. I love him, Charlie." She had been healthy for only a few years, her blindness being the only residual effect she had of her bout with meningitis.

The sheriff didn't move to release them from his aim. He sneered at the handsome young man that stood in his path. He knew what and whom the boy was and was not about to let his only little sister be taken advantage of by such an outlaw. "Lyla, he's no good for you. He'll take you for a simp, use your blindness against ya."

"No!" Jesse declared. "Lyla, I love you. You know that. I want us to spend our lives together, have babies and grow old; just you and me." His arms reached back and guided her to one side, eyes never leaving the Henry's barrels. Stepping slowly around, with the Sheriff meeting each move, he whistled sharply for Delby to head toward them. 

Charlie cocked the rifle to drive his point of resistance. "I ain't lettin' you take my sister, boy. Lyla, let's go back up to the house, now. We'll talk about this."

The horse whinnied behind him, throwing Charlie off-balance, giving Jesse the chance to order Lyla to make her way to the wagon and crawl in just before he seized the opportunity to lunge and wrestle the shotgun away from the sheriff. The two men rolled around on the ground, throwing punch after punch, each taking a hard beating but ultimately having Jesse the victor. Rolling ontop of Charlie and punching him in the jaw, knocking the older man to a daze. Quickly, he made it to his feet and turned to see Lyla struggling to climb up, into the wagon. Jesse came up behind her and called to her, letting her know it was him, before helping her up into the wagon. "YAH!" Jesse held onto Lyla as the wagon jerked and Delby started a gallop. 

Charlie lay there in the dirt and lantern light. His head spun from the blows. Upon hearing Jesse yell and the wagon roar to life, he rolled and shoved himself to his feet, grabbing for the shotgun that Jesse had knocked out of his grasp. Firing a shot in the air as a warning, he panted and wiped at the trickle of blood coming from his lower lip, knowing he was powerless to stop a running wagon by foot, alone. "LYLA!" Panting, Charlie brushed himself off and stumbled into the stable, heading for his saddle and bridle.

Delby roared into the darkness, wagon rumbling behind it. Jesse and Lyla stayed low after hearing the shot. Jesse huddled her close and reached for the reins that had been tied to the seat of the wagon and steered the horse towards the border.

~~~~

Four Corners, Colorado Territory

Chris leaned back in his chair, legs outstretched in front of him and resting on the right boot heel, crossed at the ankles and his back to the bar. Vin sat to his right with Buck sitting on the empty bar, behind both of them. A long night of drinking, gambling and carousing had given them equal reason to appreciate their cups of hot coffee. The morning had turned out to be a bit overcast but sunny and pleasant. The three of them sat in a dark corner, relieving their headaches before another round of festivities began. 

It had been early in the morning, early enough before the breakfast crowd wandered in, that the few saviours of the town could have a moment's peace while Inez opened for business, officially. Within minutes, they had been joined by the Preacher, Josiah, and town makeshift doctor, Nathan. 

As the morning wore on and folk filtered in, the level of noise had greatly increased, forcing Buck to wince at certain sounds and join Chris and Vin in a chair, at the table.

"Partied too hard, last night, Buck?" Chris spoke softly but loud enough for his friend to hear and grimace at the suggestion. Chris smiled and laughed at the small joke before having his attention called to the man standing in the doorway with JD. Sizing the stranger up and noticing the silver star on the man's left lapel, Chris nodded over to the youngest member of the group. "New sheriff, JD?" His question budded concern from the other men at the table as JD joined them.

The youngest of the seven took a deep breath and let it out slowly, keeping his voice low, he leaned in and had been ready to share the details when the sheriff spoke up to all in the room.

"I need some good men for a posse." The sheriff's eyes filtered through the crowd, looking for some good men, trackers, to take with as he had exhausted himself looking for the escaped outlaw and his younger sister. He had been through a few towns that offered very little in decent services and sighed in discontent at the newest lot that stared back at him with blank expressions.

JD turned back for glancing over his shoulder and reiterated for group. "He's Sheriff Charles Drake from Echo, huntin' an outlaw who kidnapped his sister, Lyla. He was tellin' me on the way over here. This kid, Jesse McCall, is said to be faster than you, Chris. He also murdered the first sheriff and was set to hang for it but escaped."

The man in black smirked. "Is that so? Where's the kid headed? Does he know?" Chris Larabee had fancied himself as many things but overconfident was not one of them. The story had caught his attention, not from the kid who was said to be faster than the great Chris Larabee but, the story about an outlaw that kidnapped a man's sister and was now on the run from the law. His attention was soon driven from JD to the visitor that strode to the table, boots thumping purposefully on the wooden flooring.

Charlie stared down at the six men, eyes slowly moving over each of them. "This young man tells me you, men, are willing to track down this outlaw. Jesse is a crafty devil so, I need men who know this land better than he does." His clothes had been dusty from the four-day trek across the state. He hadn't had a bath or shave since he left his town and started chasing the kidnapper who would soon be his prisoner. Charlie had chosen what to say to the young lawman and stayed on even guard with what he told the five other men at the table.

"If that's what you need. What makes you think they're headed here?" Chris looked up from his sip of coffee to see the man looming over him. His gunbelt twitched as if it itched to hunt down the kidnapper and make sure the girl was safe. The fog of the night before had finally cleared from his mind and allowed him to map out possible stops in neighbouring towns along the way from Echo to Four Corners.

Sighing and forcing the impatience out of his mind, Charlie thought for a minute. "Jesse has family in Nebraska. Or, they might be headed to Texas or Mexico. I've been all over Utah and ain't seen him. My guess, I keep missin' 'em."

Vin listened and also went through the topography of the territory, in his head, as the sheriff and Chris talked. He knew the terrain in Mexico alot better than he did Nebraska. Texas, on the other hand, was a different story. That state had been something he feared and dreamt of redemption from, all within the same breath.

Charlie narrowed his eyes at Chris. "She's my only sister. I've been takin' care of her since our Ma died of Consumption. I intend on bringin' her home, with or without help." Anger raged inside of the sheriff's veins but he didn't dare show it. He had been around Vin's age but not as worldly as the tracker. Well-kept brown hair and a goatee along with a firm, square jaw made him look older than he actually was. He smelled of sweat from hard riding and tobacco from nights of chain smoking in worry about his younger sister. He had been tall, as tall as Chris but more muscular yet, his clothes hid his physique.

Buck took one last swallow of his coffee and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "How old is this sister of yers?" He had asked, not just for personal curiosity but for assignment purposes. He had genuinely been worried for any girl that had been kidnapped from home yet, something nagged at Buck to find out more of what the sheriff was talking about.

The sheriff looked from Chris to Buck. His tone hadn't changed but he found the strength to answer the man's question without choking someone. "Eighteen."

Chris glanced from Charlie to his cup of coffee and raised it to his lips. "Maybe she's growin' into herself? Eighteen is still young enough to ride a wild hair." Looking back up, he caught the very same stone-faced look he wore after his wife and child perished, four years prior.

"She came out this way a few months back. Doesn't know hardly anyone, except from when she was a child. Circumstances became different, then. I'm leavin' in 40 minutes. You comin' or are you gonna sit here, baskin' in yer licqour?" Charlie had grown impatient with the questions and lack of concern for the situation. Straightening, he took one last look at the three at the table and stormed out of the Saloon. 

Josiah leaned against the back of his chair that he had been sitting in sideways, his right arm propped against the back. "The territory is a strange and scary place for a young lady."

JD became more anxious than before. "That ain't the half of it."

"What do you mean, JD?" Chris watched the door for the sheriff to come back but never did.

"That's what I was tryin' to tell ya. She's blind. Jesse stole her away in the middle of the night, shoved her into a wagon after he shot at the sheriff." JD had only told them what he had been told, doing his best to keep the facts straight. 

Chris unfolded himself and stood up, not waiting for the others to follow behind him, even though they did so without a beat skipped. He hadn't spoken a word since JD finished his thought. The knowledge of a young woman kidnapped by a renegade was one thing but coupled with the fact that she was blind made it all the more harder to swallow. Chris had been watching the sheriff's reaction and mannerisms since the man stepped into the saloon, sizing him up and trying to see the man's credibility. They had all been dismissed by an outdated sheriff and he wasn't about to put his friends in jeopardy like that, again. The final straw had been that the girl was new and blind.

Vin caught up to Chris on the way to their horses. "I think Ezra's havin' a mother-son moment, over at the hotel. Meet ya back here in five." Hurrying across the street, Vin stopped in the doorway of the newly refurnished hotel and scanned the room for the last of the group. He found the southerner and his mother, Maude, sitting at a table, far in the back of the room and having morning coffee while chatting about cards or Maude's latest con. Taking a breath, he made his way through the room and gained the younger Standish's attention. "We're ridin out to help a neighbourin' sheriff with outlaw trouble. You comin'?"

With a look to his mother, Ezra waited as if asking her permission, something he hadn't needed in a very long time.

"Ezra, darlin, run along with your friends. I'll get along just fine." Maude smiled a mischievous smile as the two departed the table.

~~~~

Lyla sat by the fire and soaked up the warmth as she had been shivering since they had stopped. Jesse had placed his blanket around her shoulders and that help but little. The more she clutched the gray, wool blanket about her, the more she shivered, uncontrollably. "Jesse?" Fear rose in her voice as she heard the twigs rustle, a ways from her. "Jess?!" Her excitement mounted when she heard no reply. Her mind raced with scary thoughts of Charlie being right and the young but older than she outlaw abandoning her in the middle of nowhere, with no sight or provisions. The noise continued and her nerves grew short. She crawled a few steps forward from where she sat, trying to find a weapon or something to arm herself with but stopped when her hand felt a man's boot. She screamed as she felt the man bend down and grab her arms, pulling her upward to stand up.

"Lyla, it's me. Lyla! It's Jesse! Stop!" Jesse pulled her into an embrace and held tight until her screams and struggles died down. 

Lyla took a moment to calm down. She started crying and gripped and pulled at Jesse's jacket. "I was so scared. Can we go, now?" She huddled closer to him, feeling his body breathe against hers, his heart pounding in her ear. "Jesse, please?"

Jesse caught his breath and had to calm himself down from the terrifying event that shook her. "In a while. You should rest, darlin. I brought some water from the stream, up a ways, and saw a town. We can stop there, for the night." It was nearing late afternoon and after a few nights of stopping and starting and gathering provisions from surrounding mining camps, they were losing time and giving the sheriff ample time to gather a posse to surround and capture the famous outlaw. Guiding her back to the fire, they sat down and held each other. He could feel her chest rise and fall against his.

Lyla had turned her body so that she faced him and rest her head on his left shoulder, head turned away from him. She breathed deeply, inhaling his scent. "How long to the next town, Jesse?" She yawned and had jumped at the action, forgetting for a moment how exhausted she had been but hadn't wanted to let down her guard of the exciting terrain Jesse had introduced her to and educated her on the plants and herbs indigenous to the areas.

Rubbing her back and looking up at the fading afternoon sky, Jesse thought about distance. "It'll take us a few hours, at least. We'll get you something to eat and then we can go. Alright?" Kissing her hair and patting her arm to let her know he wanted to get up, they unfolded from their embrace. "I managed to catch some fish, in the stream and I have some bread from the last town." He stood and walked back to the wagon, where his pack had been. He retrieved the cloth napkin that kept the bread and then searched for his knife, which had fallen to the bottom of the pack, to fillet the fish. Jesse had been so busy digging in his pack that he hadn't heard the three men sneak up from behind.

"Jesse!"

Jesse shot around to find Lyla had been taken captive by two dirty and overly eager scavengers. They held her between them, guns drawn and making cat calls and taunts to the young man in the wagon. The third, and leader of the trio, had moved to the side of the wagon and was now holding a gun on Jesse. "Let her go. I'm warnin' you."

The man beside the wagon laughed out loud and cocked his revolver. "Oooh, what are ya gonna do, boy? Cry?" Darkened teeth glistened from the man's scruffy face. "Me and the boys only want to keep warm, for awhile." Waving Jesse out of the wagon and watching as the younger gunfighter walked to the edge and climbed down, setting the food and supplies down beside him before doing so. "Been watchin' you since Beaver City. This lovely little lady looks like she's been wantin' to dance. But first," the man came closer and shoved the barrel of his gun into Jesse's face, pulling the blond hair with his freehand, "how 'bout you gimma back the gold you stole, boy?" The man hissed into Jesse's ear the request.

Keeping his eyes set on Lyla, Jesse spoke calmly to her. "It's alright, darlin. It'll be over, soon." Jesse breathed calmly and glanced back at the filthy man beside him. "I didn't steal no gold. And it certainly wasn't yers."

"Don't believe ya, boy."

The two scruffy looking men that held her had started in with their lusty groping and noises, scaring the young woman even more. One wore a large, dirty and floppy hat that looked like it might have spent time in the river. The other had a long, black beard that looked coarse and unkempt and all three men looked to be in their forties. "Hey Simms, she's real pretty. Me first!" The bearded man stood to her left and began to fumble with his soiled trousers, shoving back his ragged duster while the other one held onto Lyla even tighter as she screamed and struggled against him.

While the second man held her, he took the time to try and feel her up, amongst her struggles and screams, he laughed and thought it funny. Coaxing her and trying to lift her dress, ripping it in the process. He was surprised that she could fight back, as small as she was. "Yea, pretty little thing, aren't ya?" He cooed.

Simms licked his lips as he undressed Lyla with his eyes, looking away from Jesse for only a split second. In a single blink, he heard the report of a Colt and watched in shock and horror as the man who busied himself with his trousers, was knocked backwards and landed on his back, dead from a bullet to the forehead. As Simms turned back, Jesse had pointed the weapon at him and fired before the man could squeeze the trigger of his 1835 revolver. The bullet hit him in the chest and forced him to fall to the ground, dropping his gun and screaming in pain.

Jesse had removed his gun from its holster, aimed and fired, killing one man and fatally wounding a second all within a few seconds of each other. Steadying his aim on the third man, he repeated his earlier warning, "let her go." Cocking his gun, he aimed for the man's head as the third man trembled and dodged, releasing Lyla and shoving her to the ground, narrowly missing the campfire.

The man turned and tried to run but tripped over a tuft of crabgrass and landing face first into the dirt. When he turned around and looked up, Jesse stood over him, still aiming the Colt's barrel at him. "Please, mister, we didn't mean nuthin. Just wanted to have some fun. You understand, right? We weren't gonna hurt her or nuthin." The man pleaded for his life and held his hands up in weak attempt to shield himself from the last bullet.

"Jesse," Lyla called as she steadily got her bearings and sat up. 

Jesse's smooth, young face with a cold, monotone expression broke his stare from the man and turned to glance at her as she felt about the area around her. He turned back in time to see the man get to his feet and take two steps towards him. As the man lunged toward him, Jesse fired and shot the man in the right thigh, causing the man to yelp and detour his attack. Holstering his gun, Jesse turned back to Lyla and hurried to her side. "I'm here. Stand up, it's okay." His voice was once again calm as he helped her to stand and walk over to the wagon. He then hooked up Delby and climbed up, beside Lyla to give the command to go, leaving the third man alive and screaming curses of pain and revenge to the fleeing couple.

 

Continued.


	2. Chapter 2

The town they strolled into was a sleepy one. People on either side of the wide street, either sweeping dirt from their walks or enjoying the evening breeze, finished their business and quickly ran inside. Very few businesses had been open, at this time of night and it was becoming obvious that it was not only a one-horse town but a clean, low-key town at that. Although, the townspeople had their church and other Christian fineries, the one constant in both Four Corners and Willow Ridge had been a staple in nearly every town they stopped in; a saloon.

A hard day's ride north of Four Corners left the eight men and horses hot and dusty and in need of cooling off. 

Charlie, Buck and Vin tied their horses to the post, in front of the hotel while Ezra, Josiah and Nathan went further on into town and stopped in front of the saloon, leaving Chris and JD to scout the livery and Kent's General Store. Buck had taken to charming the saloon ladies while Vin and Charlie asked questions to the bartender and other patrons, none answered with anything informative. Ezra, Nathan and Josiah had even less luck. However, it seemed Chris was able to observe a young man, standing at the counter of the general store, waiting to pay for his provisions. 

Chris edged into the store from the front door and moved to the long display table, in the middle of the room, pretending to rummage through some books that had just arrived the day before, from Denver. His eyes only glancing down once or twice but focusing on the storekeeper and customer at the counter. Tapping JD on the arm and pointing for him to go to the right of the young man while he went to the left, Chris made his way slowly up to the counter and stood next to the man believed to be the outlaw they hunted. With a nod of his head, he motioned for the shopkeeper to make himself scarce as he continued to step slowly towards the counter. He waited for the shopkeeper to step to the side and exit through the front door before making his move to conversation.

JD looped his thumbs around his beltbuckle and followed Chris's example of approach. In making it to the counter before Chris, he hadn't noticed the young man's left hand reach across and grab JD's left holstered gun, cock it and aim it at JD as he came to a stop. 

Chris had observed slight movement from the man at the counter, waiting for his change, and looked down enough to see the gun aimed at JD. Quickly thinking of how not to get he or his friend shot, Chris decided to take things simple and talk the outlaw into giving up willingly. "Oh, I wouldn't do that, Jesse." Chris kept his voice calm and low and fashioned his own gun's aim on the man in the middle. Staring at him from underneath his hat, he saw himself at 24; young, brave and very impetuous. 

"Must be some mistake. The name's Burdett." Grabbing his own gun out of it's holster, on his right hip, he crossed himself and aimed it at the man on his left. Looking slowly from JD to Chris, he elaborated, "Matthew Burdett." Blue eyes blinked up at the man who was nearly four inches taller, never straying from the calmness he had shown the three men who attacked him earlier.

Chris smiled disarmingly and cocked his gun. "I got a handbill that says otherwise, Jesse." Staring into the blue eyes, he had almost lost himself and reminded him of where he was, currently. "I'd advise you to give him back the gun. Now." He dared the younger man into a duel of confidence. He knew Jesse wouldn't pull the trigger and find himself with a bullet, if he or JD should acquire one. A glint in Jesse's eyes told Chris to back off. It was the same look he had carried when courting Sarah, his wife. Love. "Lyla around here, or did you leave her somewhere to fend for herself?"

Jesse's expression changed from calm and collect to threatened and insulted at the insinuation. Yet, he remained silent.

JD had been preoccupied watching the exchange between Chris and Jesse to pay any mind to his own guns, until he moved his hands to where both handles should have been. Looking down and seeing his own six-shooter aimed at him, JD gasped. "How'd you--?" He never got a response and part of him was glad for it. He only half-believed the story Sheriff Charlie had told him, on the long trip but, recent events had changed his mind. He had seen how fast Chris was in pulling his own weapon and hadn't thought that anyone could be faster, until he calculated the timing of their encounter with Jesse.

Releasing the hammer and sliding JD's gun back, into its holster and winking at the shocked man in the bowler hat, Jesse reached a steady hand up to the counter and grabbed the brown paper package he had tried to pay for. Still aiming his Colt at Chris, he took a step back, carefully, and gained distance from the two men that had found him. He wasn't sure who these strangers were but could guess they were hired bounty hunters for the sheriff of Echo. His suspicions were confirmed as he heard a familiar voice call to him from the doorway.

"McCall!"

Heart pounding in his chest as Jesse looked past Chris and saw Charlie holding the very same Henry on him. As the sheriff raised the rifle to aim, Jesse took note of who and what was around him and shot out a glass jar of candy, on a table in the middle of the room, sending the colourful gumdrops everywhere, turned around and shoved JD into the man in black before whipping his head around to find an exit. He found it in a rear-facing window and quickly ran and jumped through it, glass shattering in an explosion of matter passing through it, bullets from the Henry followed but were silenced by Chris and Buck as they reminded the sheriff that Lyla might have been outside, waiting for Jesse.

Charlie and Vin had come through the door and hurried to the window, Vin taking aim but losing his target in the blackness of the desert night. The rest of the gang had followed close behind the sheriff and the tracker. Shoving Chris in anger, Charlie yelled at the man in black for not apprehending the prisoner when they had the chance. "Dammit! That boy knows where my sister is and if he's hurt her, so help me-- I'll skin his hide until there ain't nothin' left o' him!"

Grabbing the man from behind, Buck held back the sheriff's punches he had wanted to take at Chris for letting the blond haired outlaw escape. He knew Chris must have had a reason not to pursue the outlaw further, until daylight, and decided to let it go. If the girl was still alive, they wouldn't find her in the dark. As good of a tracker as Vin was, without proper light, they would have been walking in circles and only delaying their rescue more. "Firin' at him, through a window, at night, might just get her killed from your own stupidity." Buck growled over the sheriff's right shoulder, defending his friend's halted actions.

Nathan and Ezra went around the back of the building, guns drawn, in case the younger gunfighter remained behind and hidden. 

Ezra's foot had kicked something that didn't feel like a rock or log, at all. "Mister Jackson, I do believe the boy has disappeared into the night. Shall we reconvene with the others?" Reaching down and picking up the package, he holstered his gun and used his best judgement of what the package could have been. He knew from his mother's expensive tastes that it must have been some sort of garment yet, had it been for Jesse, he would have worn it out of the store, instead of having it wrapped so carefully. 

Seeing only minor movement in the distant darkness, Nathan had moved a few steps further from Ezra and stared into the night's landscape. "Yea. He's quick." Nathan turned back from where he stood and saw Vin and Josiah making their way over to them with a small lantern they had borrowed from the store clerk.

"Indeed." Ezra agreed and held up the sizable item. "However, he was quite without what he came for."

Vin traced the steps where the glass from the window had been broke out and where Jesse had landed, using only the light from the small lantern he held. Finding a small foot trail, he could follow where the footprints went but only for so far before losing them again. Crouching low, at the end of the second trail, he dipped his fingers into a wetness that painted the leaves of a tuft of weeds. "Blood."

"Human or animal?" Chris stood behind him and looked out into the nightscape. 

Vin shook his head. "Can't tell. Too dark out here. But, I think, by first light, I might be able to find where he went. Might still be in town, I reckon." Standing up, he looked about them, where the light landed, looked one direction and then the other, but only had theories. "If this kid is as quick as you say, we're gonna need to do this before Drake finds out. Gettin' him runnin' in there after Jesse, just might get her killed.

"That won't make Drake too happy." Chris agreed but had his doubts of a smooth capture. "Something tells me he isn't tellin' us the whole story." He had taken into account of Jesse's tones during their conversation. He knew the tone of love and also the tone of anger at the insult to his manhood. 

Turning to look at Chris, Vin raised an eyebrow. "Somethin' happen between you two?"

"Can't put my finger on it. When we had him cornered, he coulda shot JD, me, Drake, you.... anyone. Instead, he aimed for that candy jar and took off through the window. Then there's that package he left behind..." Chris's mind thought of the two dead men and the last dying man that spoke of a "lightning quick" kid with golden hair and the pretty girl he rode with that robbed them and shot he and his two mining buddies.

"So..?"

"We wait." Walking back up to the street, they found the others at the saloon. Chris had wanted to question the eager sheriff about how he came to know Jesse McCall so well and why he considered him an outlaw. The biggest thing on Chris's mind was the look of shear terror in Jesse's eyes as he met Chris's.

~~~~

Doubling back to a small schoolhouse, on the far edge of town, Jesse ducked in through the back door. Delby, he had tied to a tree, not too far from where they were and covered the resting Lyla with his bedroll. Quietly, he made his way over to where she had laid down, panting and wincing in pain at the gash on his left arm. One of the Henry's bullets had knicked him in the forearm and made it bleed a little more than a scratch. He had lit a lantern that had been on the teacher's desk and turned the flame down to barely bright enough to see by before making his way over to where Lyla had been resting.

Hearing the movement and footsteps, Lyla opened her eyes and sat up. "Jesse?" Her voice above a whisper but still quiet. 

"I'm here." Groaning quietly in pain, Jesse came to sit down beside her. She had taken a place under the coathooks, in the small, one-room schoolhouse. "We- we have to leave, here, sweetheart. There's another town, just up a ways. We can stop there for the night but, we have to be real quiet, alright?"

Lyla shook her head and placed her hands on his forearms, resting her head on his left shoulder. Her right hand squeezed the gash on his arm, making him flinch and groan in pain. "You're hurt? What happened?" Sitting back up, Lyla moved her hand to her already torn skirt, lifting it to get to the cleaner underskirt. 

"It's nothing. I'll be fine." He watched as she deftly tore at the garment, ripping off a single strip and felt his arm for the wound, once again. 

"Nonsense. I want to take care of you, just like you take care of me. Hold still." Feeling for the wound, she felt his soft touch guiding her to where to tie the tourniquet. She asked him several times if she was tieing it too tightly but each time he replied with a "no."

Jesse breathed in and released it before kissing her, softly on the lips. 

Lyla smiled, knowing he would see it and smile as well. "Did you get something to eat?"

"Uh, no. Don't worry about me. I'll be alright." Jesse's stomach betrayed him and growled, angrily. Remembering, in his mother's absence, that it was rude to eat before a courted lady did. 

Trying her best not to be too harsh in her scolding, Lyla shook her head. "Jesse, you haven't eaten in two days. You'll get sick."

Jesse blushed, embarrassed at being caught. "How'd you know?"

A soft laugh and a pretty smile. "You said we only had food for a few days. The last should have been three days ago."

"We should go."

Again, Lyla shook her head. "No, Jesse. I want to stay here, for tonight. I don't want to sleep out there, again. The noises scare me." Wrapping her arms around him, she pleaded with him. "Please?" She loved the way his heartbeat sounded in her ears. In all honesty, she hadn't cared where they were. She felt completely safe when he was around. 

Jesse had been reluctant to admit to himself that even he had been exhausted from running, for days, and not have a well-deserved night's rest. They had been kept in darkness, with only the soft, dim light of the lantern and the light of the moon coming in from the windows, to light his way to her. "Alright." Straightening out the bedroll, and removing his duster and blowing out the small flame in the lantern, Jesse laid down on his back, letting her rest her head on his chest. He tucked his colt between them and threw the duster over them, for covers. His head rest on the seat of his saddle and his eyes quickly slid shut. His mouth opened, involuntarily, for a silent yawn and as he settled down, Jesse was able to lose himself in his dreams.

~~~~

In the predawn hours, Vin, Chris and Buck armed themselves and slipped out of the hotel to track down the elusive young outlaw and the kidnapped woman. Vin had started back, behind the General Store, and came across where he had found the trace of blood, the night before. Fleeting footprints and close to nothing for broken twigs kept him searching for quite the distance. Finally, Vin spotted a piece of material that looked like the gray shirt Jesse had been wearing, the night before. It blew from a dead twig that had been broken off a bush and now lay on the ground.

They walked for a quarter mile before Vin was able to pick up horse tracks. "Been carryin' two people, since yesterday. Didn't Drake say they had a flat bed wagon?"

"Yea. They musta ditched it between here and the three men he killed." Buck chimed in, in almost a whisper as he bent down to where Vin knelt and pointed over to a smaller trail that led to the empty schoolhouse, where the day old hoofprints went. Tall desert plants had grown over, hiding the schoolhouse from steps back but, uncovered it as they grew closer to the small hill.

Looking to where Buck pointed, Vin stood and walked over to one clear print. With the sun coming up and the morning starting with a red and blue hue, he took a closer look. "These have been here for about a day. The footprints beside it are from last night. He's been through here." As the sun rose higher, the ground glistened in spots where the pieces of glass had fallen after being shaken from Jesse's clothes. "Might be hiding out in the schoolhouse."

"You two, be careful." Chris stood tall, right hand holding the stock to his rifle while resting the long, black barrel on his right shoulder. "Just because we got lucky last night, don't mean he's in a better mood this mornin'." Following Vin up the small hill and down the trail, they paused briefly and found the open window where Jesse had sneaked in, after escaping Sheriff Drake. Whispering to Buck to stay outside and next to the window, he told Vin to make his way around back and come in through the back door while he came in through the front. Placing a finger over his lips to indicate silence, Chris moved, looking for the horse Jesse had tied to a tree. 

Silently, he opened the door and stepped inside. It was dark, still, yet he managed to listen for the sounds of breathing. Hearing low moans and quiet gasps, he spotted Vin at the other end of the room. Both had heard the breathing and gingerly stepped over towards the sound. 

Jesse lay atop Lyla, facing her and moving in a slow and pained rhythm. Neither had heard the two lawmen come in and sneak up to them. They lie there, making love, under the empty coat rack, on the floor. Both had been clothed but certain parts had been moved aside or lowered for easy access. Lyla moaned at his slow ministrations as he kissed her neck and then moved to her collarbone. He had completely let go of the Colt he gripped all during the night and closed his own eyes in ecstasy.

Lowering himself to one knee beside them, Chris placed the barrel of the rifle against Jesse's adam's apple, halting the young man in his movements. Calmly and quietly, Chris spoke, "pull out, get dressed, move away from her, Jesse." Chris reached down and quickly moved the Colt out of Jesse's arm range before standing up, again.

Swallowing the lump in his throat, Jesse did as instructed, glancing around to see the man in black and the tracker that had been with Sheriff Drake, the night before. Without a word, Jesse eyed Vin, holding the sawed off shotgun on him, and then turned back to Chris. He hadn't recognised the rifle and thought they had been acting on their own. "Who are you?" Once again, his voice was calm as not to scare Lyla.

Lyla, sensing something was wrong when Jesse stopped in his movements, sat up as he removed himself from her. "Jess-?"

"It's alright, darlin. Stay calm, now." Jesse steadied his gaze on Chris but hadn't lost count of Vin, who was making his way around to where Lyla was, walking behind Chris. "Mister, you better stop right there. I'm warnin' you. Don't you touch her." For a split second, he took his eyes off of Chris and glared daringly at Vin. On a half-step forward, he paused as the rifle barrel end poked him under the chin.

"I was nice, last night. I won't hesitate to pull this trigger, Jesse." Chris warned.

Lyla must have heard Jesse gasp because as soon as Vin made it within arm's length, she screamed and lunged for the young outlaw. Her efforts were dashed as Vin caught her by the waist and spun her away from the other two men. Kicking and screaming and thrashing against the tracker that held her tightly, she called out for Jesse but heard no response. "NO! Let me go!"

Watching in horror as Lyla became more and more upset, Jesse continually tried to step forward but was repeatedly poked in the throat by the end of the shotgun. "Stop! Stop, please. Yer scarin' her! Lyla, please, calm down! Lyla! Let 'er go! Take yer hands offa her!" 

Before another word could be spoken, Buck ran in through the back door and threw his arms around Jesse, pinning him from doing anything in retaliation. "Calm down, boy."

Charlie and the remaining gang had heard the commotion on their way from the hotel to the livery and hurriedly made their way down to the schoolhouse, at the edge of town, past a few evergreens, standing in the way. Crashing through the door, Charlie spotted where Vin held Lyla in a chair, across the room, and then back to where Buck and now Ezra were holding Jesse by either arm. Smirking and sauntering up to the youth, he sneered as he stopped two feet from him. "Seems I owe you a 'thank you', Jesse." Taking his Henry and using the stock to strike Jesse across the jaw, knocking him out, he finished, "thanks."

 

Continued.


	3. Chapter 3

The night before......

Sitting around a big, round table, in the upper level and in the far corner, of the split-level saloon, the men had their drinks and eats while they talked about what Charlie wasn't saying about the man he hunted. "I became the sheriff in Echo about three years ago. The first sheriff was a man named Sloan McCall. He married a widow and adopted her eight-year-old daughter. She had a husband that was good to her and that girl. But, he got sick with Typhoid and died. So, she and her daughter moved out west About a year later, they had a boy; Jesse. Sloan was about Jesse's age when he married that woman, an older woman. When Jesse was 10, Sloan got mixed up in the war, down in Arizona Territory. When he came back, well, he was different." He had relayed the stories the previous sheriff had told him, on several quiet nights, sitting outside of the Echo jail.

"War changes a man in many ways." Josiah had been quiet for the majority of the trip. He had been thinking about the circumstances of the situation and what it would mean for Jesse, if caught alive. Mostly, he prayed for the girl and that she was alright in the hands of a ruthless outlaw. He also prayed that Jesse would go quietly and let justice be done.

Charlie took another drink of his whiskey and set the empty glass down on the table and pushed it away with his finger. "Well, people talk in that town. Anyway, Jesse's sister died and his ma moved back to Nebraska, where her brother lives. Jesse stayed behind, with his pa. Since he came back from the war, though, Sloan was harder, rougher and when his wife left....." Charlie reached for the bottle he, Ezra and Nathan shared, poured himself another glassful and threw it back. The mouthful burned down his throat. ".....about eight years ago was when I met Sloan and the boy. I was his deputy. He was a good man until she left him. His temper got shorter. Jesse was a rowdy kid. Smartin' off to his pa, neglectin' chores. All he wanted to do was play with that gun. He got real good, too. One day, I was comin' back from helpin' the stage fix its wheel. I heard Sloan yellin' at Jesse, somethin' real fierce. Then I heard that shot."

JD sat forward from leaning back in his chair. "He shot his pa, in cold blood?" JD hadn't made the connection of the first sheriff being Jesse's father, right off, but as he listened to the story, it had come together. That note had made Jesse all the more dangerous.

"Yep." Charlie stared at the table. "Killed him where he stood, right there in jail. That day, I became the sheriff and he became my prisoner. The circuit judge came through, tried him and pronounced sentence, decided to hang Jesse for murder. Jesse tried to claim self defense but, Sloan loved that boy, and his ma. Anyway, while he was waitin' for the day to swing, we started talkin' about a lotta things. But, everytime Sloan would come up, he'd shy away from it."

Buck nursed his glass of beer, thinking about the story Charlie was telling. "How did your sister get mixed up with him?"

Charlie sighed. "Lyla came out west, after our ma's funeral. Our parents had a small piece of land up in Montana Territory. She met Jesse the first day in town, about five years ago. Two years later, I sent her up to a place in Dakota Territory. There was a school that was teachin' people how to write and read for the blind. I didn't know just how bad she took a shine to him until she came back. Six months later, Jesse was awaitin' trial for murder. When it came time to hang him, my deputy and I were escortin' him out when he slipped right through our grasp and took off on that horse. He disappeared. Then, I found out Lyla was secretly in touch with him through that school I sent her to."

"If that young man is such a cold-blooded killer, that young lady wound be scared out of her mind from Jesse. Why run to him and not use the incident at Whipporwill Creek to try and get away? Blind or not. That last man said she clung to Jesse." Buck hadn't realised he had spoken his concern outloud until Josiah spoke up from nursing his own drink.

Josiah leaned forward and placed his half-empty glass down on the table. "She might be too scared to go against the young man. Seeing the horrors of his actions unfold are less terrifying than not being able to see anything at all."

JD kept his hand on the gun Jesse had removed and used against him. His mind replayed the same scene over and over. Since he had joined the seven, he had grown considerably faster and had better aim. His focus stole glances to Chris. He was sure Chris had seen his fair share of people who were faster than he was and had grown faster, himself, because of it. But to have a kid of 21 be faster than Chris and JD combined, was unconscionable. "His pa teach him to be so fast, like that?"

"Nope." Charlie shook his head. 

"So, what the Hell are we in for, with him? Does he just know some cheap parlour tricks?"

Charlie smiled, knowingly. "Well, I'll tell you this much. He's so damn fast, he doesn't feel the need to prove himself." Nodding in affirmation, Charlie stood and excused himself for the night.

Chris had also been replaying what happened in the General Store, in his mind, but unlike JD's version, he thought about how many mistakes Jesse had made. Jesse chose to zigzag across the territory, knowing he was a wanted man with a kidnapped girl instead of leaving the territory. He shot and killed his own father but left Charlie alive to pursue him. He left the third man alive but killed the other two "miners". And then, left Lyla alone and himself unguarded, in the General Store, as well as not retrieving his package that he had dropped, once outside of the building. The package. Chris thought about the package that was left behind; the softness of it. Clothes, perhaps? By all means, Jesse had been sloppy for an outlaw. 

Finishing his own drink, Vin stared at his glass, in his hand. "Why would Jesse drag Lyla back and forth across the territory and not make a straight break for Mexico? Somethin' don't make sense."

Noticing his friend quiet and brooding, Ezra looked up from shuffling the same deck of cards he held in his hand for over an hour and offered his two-cents worth. "Then, perhaps, we should use this time to come up with a plan to steal the fair lady away and not harm anyone else, in the matter?"

Chris said nothing but stared at the cards Ezra played with. After a moment of thinking and listening to the sound of the cards softly slapping one another, in Ezra's hands, he voiced his thought. "I think we should get an early start, in the mornin', startin' with finding Jesse and Lyla. If he is still in town, we need to find out where. Drake sounds about tempered enough to kill the boy, in attempt to get Lyla back. Jesse let down his guard once, to get that package, so let's see if he does it again."

"Why come out of hiding to get a package he left behind?" Nathan questioned. 

Buck stood. "Let's find out. Shall we?" He had led them upstairs and as they reached the top, Chris had taken over in leading them to his room, where the package had been.

~~~~

They sat around a roaring campfire, eating their supper and sipping on hot coffee. Charlie and Lyla sat the furthest away from where the still unconscious outlaw lay. He had been guarded mainly by Chris, on one side while the others took turns, sitting on the other side. Buck had removed the gunbelt and Colt, at the schoolhouse, before they draped him over Delby's back. 

Next to Charlie, on his right side, sat Nathan, bandaging Lyla's swollen ankle from falling as she struggled to get away from Vin and Charlie upon leaving the schoolhouse. She had refused to speak to Charlie about the events leading up to where they were and barely tolerated anyone else in the party who wasn't Jesse. Lyla listened to the voices around her, getting a feel for their mentality as well as their mannerisms. She could hear Chris and Vin talking as the two got up and moved around the fire, to their horses, for provisions. But, it was Josiah who had calmed her down with his wisdom and Testament stories. They sat and talked for most of the mealtimes, on their way back to Four Corners.

Chris stood up to stretch his legs and traded spots with Vin while he went to relieve himself, behind a tree, away from camp. 

Vin sat down on a fallen tree trunk, behind the prisoner who was stretched out, on his left side and facing the fire, and watch Jesse sleep for a few minutes. His head turned to see JD sitting down on the trunk, also. "Somethin' on your mind, JD?" He had noticed that the younger of the seven had been very cautious about being around the outlaw that now lay helpless and in cuffs, at their feet. Vin had collected Jesse's things and handed them to JD and Josiah, who had stayed with Jesse's horse, during the apprehension. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Shaking his head and resting his hand on the holstered gun, on his right hip, JD's eyes never left the sleeping young man, scared that he might spring up with a gun he swiped from somewhere and kill him, instead of aiming for the jar of candy. "I don't know how he did it, Vin, but-- that was pretty damn fast, last night."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean,-" JD glanced over his shoulder to where Chris had disappeared before leaning over and looking back at Vin. "I walked up on his right and then Chris said something to him about handing it back to me. I looked down and my own gun was sticking into my ribs. Not two--" JD glanced around, again, for Chris, "not two seconds before, both of his hands were holdin' that package, he wanted. Chris was a step behind me and by the time he came to a stop, Jesse already had his gun on him. I saw his eyes, Vin. Cold. Almost dead. I mean, Chris has his reasons for bein' who he is and pretty damn fast, too. But, Jesse made him look like a-- a-- an amateur."

Vin thought back to that morning's capture and how off-guard Jesse had been to not even reach for his gun, that had been beside him, or hear he and Chris make an approach. The look of shock and anger on the youthful face as Vin made his way cautiously over to where Lyla stood, in the schoolhouse. "He's just a man, JD. As human as any of us." What he and Chris had witnessed the two doing, that morning, spoke volumes of just how human the outlaw was. 

JD looked down at Jesse, again. "How'd he get to be so fast?"

Sitting down on the other side of JD, Chris took a deep breath before answering the question. "A better question would be 'why'?" He elaborated as the other two looked over at him. "A man gets good with practice but, that takes years and a lotta patience. He wouldn't be that good without havin' a reason to be. That Colt's a heavy gun for a young kid. With a small revolver, he'd probably be twice as fast. If there's a reason he needed to be that good, it's probably a dangerous one."

As JD looked across the fire, to the Sheriff and his sister, he remembered sitting in the saloon, the night before, and listening to Charlie tell the seven of why he didn't like Jesse being with his only, blind, little sister. Upon asking Charlie about the extent of Jesse's abilities, all he received was the haunting reply of, _"well, I'll tell you this much. He's so damn fast, he doesn't feel the need to prove himself."_ As the memory of Charlie nodding and excusing himself from the table, early, faded JD's mind raced of thoughts of what could have actually happened in the store, beforehand. "He could have killed me. Just, shot me where I stood and wouldn't have thought twice about it."

"He coulda killed me, JD. Anyone of us. But, he didn't." Chris summed, ready to drop the conversation.

JD smiled nervously and shook his head in disbelief. "Oh no, you were ready for him. Besides, you had yer gun on him, too."

Chris looked over at Lyla, sitting next to but not turned toward Buck, whom she had been talking to for the past five minutes.

~~~~

Sometime in the night, the sleeping body, that had been unconscious for the day and half of the night, stirred. He had been exhausted from being on guard for so long that it had overpowered him enough to recuperate. Silently, he opened his eyes and looked around. Raising his head off of his saddle that Nathan had placed there, as a pillow, Jesse looked for any sign of life. In turning his head to see the full circle around the fire, he was once again staring down the barrel of a gun. 

"Mornin, sunshine!" Buck smiled from sitting on the log, beside his head. "Goin' somewhere?"

Jesse swallowed and turned to see Chris stand up from having just settled down for his turn at sleep, a few feet from where Buck sat. Pushing himself up to a sitting position, Jesse shivered after getting a good look at Buck in the fire light. "Have to piss, sir." It was only for an instant that he thought he was staring at the ghost of his father, holding a gun on him.

Buck cleared his throat and stood up, grabbing Jesse by the arm and pulling him to his feet. "Well, let's get to it, then." Turning his head and nodding to Chris, Buck shoved Jesse in front of him. Pushing him towards a far tree, away from camp. He knew to keep the young man away from his gun belt so, he emptied the bullets from the gun before replacing it in the holster. He had paid attention to Charlie's tale of just how fast the young man was believed to be and he knew it was possible but, he had never seen Jesse in action. It was almost fun to him to taunt and dare the outlaw to try something. He knew the others weren't far away and Jesse's gun had been placed in Chris's saddlebags. Lyla had remained quiet about the time she had spent with Jesse, leaving Buck to have his thoughts. He didn't see what Chris and Vin had, walking into the tiny schoolhouse. He also didn't figure that Jesse had been preoccupied and that was how they had managed to subdue the youth.

Upon grabbing the back of Jesse's shirt and pulling him to a stop, in front of a tall birch, Buck stood directly behind him and pressed himself against his prisoner, leaning over to whisper into Jesse's right ear. "Now, I heard you were pretty fast. Just so smooth and cold. But, if that were true, we'd still be huntin' you. That young lady, over there, is scared outta her pretty little mind about you. So, you just try somethin'. I dare ya. An' I will tan yer hide before you can even attempt at makin' a move to harm her, again. Comprende?"

Jesse nodded and was allowed to relieve himself. When he finished, he buttoned himself up but paused before he turned to face Buck. "Takin' me back to Echo?" 

"Nope." Buck stood a foot away from him. He didn't dare give him privacy. "Not just yet. Those three men you killed, back there, were within our County lines. Pretty sure, the Judge wants to determine self defense or not. Then, you go back, with the Sheriff, to hang for killin' yer pa, boy." As Buck grabbed Jesse's arm, to take him back to camp, Jesse twisted out of his grip, grabbed Buck's Colt that had been in the holster, punched Buck in the stomach and shoved away from him, making his escape all within several seconds.

Jesse ran through the woods, Chris and Vin chasing after him. Buck had joined in, once gathering his breath from the punch. He had stumbled a few times but managed to get to his feet and evade being seen by his pursuers. Still in handcuffs, Jesse hid under an overgrown, Mesquite. With his back against the trunk, he waited there and caught his breath. Panting hard and trying to contain the noise he made, Jesse took the time to look over Buck's Peacemaker. Opening it up, his heart sunk a little as he found there wasn't any bullets. Deflated, he sighed. 

In looking around, Jesse saw movement come from 50 feet away and scrambled to his feet. He ran for 20 more feet before being knocked to the ground by Vin. They wrestled for a few minutes but just when Jesse gained the upper hand, rolling on top of Vin, getting ready to punch him in the jaw, the butt of Chris's Peacemaker hit him between the shoulderblades and dropped him to the ground. 

"Man, that kid has some energy!" Vin puffed as he got to his feet. 

Chris stood over Jesse's unconscious body once again. "Been thinking about this mornin'. The look in his eyes, when I told him to pull out. That wasn't anger. Not even a boast. No, he looked at me like he saw the devil. Then there's the look he gave Buck. It was like..... He's scared of somethin', in that town, Vin."

"Murder does that to a man." 

Shaking his head, Chris turned to see Buck slowly but surely running towards them. "You alright, Buck?"

Buck came to a stop beside Chris. "Where is he? I'll teach him to respect his elders. Punch me in the stomach and take my damn gun. I'll tan his hide." He growled and looked down to where Vin now knelt, retracting his earlier statement. Buck bent down and picked up his gun that Jesse had dropped when Vin knocked him to the ground. "Tell me something. How is it, he's supposed to so danged fast but you two have managed to catch this little runt, twice in one day?"

Chris thought it best to let Buck cool down before heading back to camp. "Just lucky, I guess." 

Still kneeling beside Jesse, Vin noticed a bruise on Jesse's back, where his shirt had pulled up. He was ready to say something when Jesse moaned and started coming around. "You alright, there? Shouldn'ta run." He could tell Jesse was in pain by the way he struggled to make it to all fours and then stand up. Nodding to Chris, Vin grabbed one arm while Chris grabbed the other and both pulled him to his feet. 

When he turned around, he came face to face with an angry Buck. Taking a step back but still being held by the two men, Jesse's eyes widened with fear but was quickly shaken away. "It don't matter where you take me. I'm as good as hung. The Sheriff'll see to that." 

"Oh ye of little faith. Maybe the judge'll go easy on ya. That is, if you quit runnin' away 'fore you get to tell yer side of things." Chris draped an arm around Jesse's shoulders as they escorted him back to camp. 

~~~~

Vin heated up a plate of some beans and dug out a biscuit, he had been saving for morning. Taking it over to where Jesse, Chris and Buck sat, back at the fallen tree, he handed it to the young man and noted Jesse had been starving from the way the outlaw hungrily accepted the food. 

"Might wanna slow down, son." Buck leaned forward, over Jesse's left shoulder and whispered.

Jesse paused, hearing his father's voice and sentiment come from the bounty hunter behind him. Choking a bit, Jesse breathed and kept himself from throwing it all back up before shoveling another spoonful into his mouth.

Leaning over, Vin whispered into Chris's ear, "this kid's eatin' like his belly button's burnin' a blister against his backbone."

Chris nodded and watched Jesse eat, intently. "When was the last you ate, Jesse?"

Jesse paused again. Finishing the bite in his mouth, he thought. "Couple days."

"Why?"

Jesse shrugged. "Ran outta food."

Chris lowered himself to sit beside Jesse. "I saw yer pack. There were a few bits left in there. You were givin' your rations to Lyla so that you could save your money you left Echo with. In the General Store, you bought her a new dress. The one she's got on now, is all ripped up. Did you rip it, b'fore we found you?" Chris had his doubts that Jesse hadn't been the complete gentleman that he had portrayed himself as.

Shaking his head and hearing Chris's rising anger, Jesse answered promptly. "No sir."

"Don't lie to me, boy." Chris decided to play on a hunch he had, hoping Jesse would be completely honest with him, if he did.

Turning his head and staring pointedly at Chris, with Vin and Buck listening in, as well, Jesse once again held his calm in his answer. "Guess you won't believe me, then."

"Try me."

 

Continued.


	4. Chapter 4

Four Corners

The next afternoon, the posse rode back into town with Jesse and Lyla in tow. Jesse's eyes had been fixed on Lyla's back, as she rode along side her brother, at the head of the posse, while he hung back with Vin and Josiah. His eyes darted left and right, finding glances of townfolk, standing on the walks, watching them. He swallowed as the pit in his stomach grew deeper.

Vin and Sheriff Drake accompanied Jesse to the jail while Nathan, Chris and Mary escorted Lyla up to an empty room, in the hotel. Mary had introduced herself to the scared young woman as they walked up the hotel stairs. She had been apprised of the situation, after the men had rode out to find them, by Maude. 

Lyla held on to the railing with her right hand and Chris's crooked arm, with her left. Step by step, he led her up the stairs and down the hall to the fourth door on the right, across from Ezra's but next to Vin's room. He told her that if she needed anything, during the night, to go to the wall, on her right, and knock three times. Lyla had become accustomed to the smell of Vin's leather clothing and the sound of his footsteps on the boards, from the walkways along the street. Lyla nodded. She also recognised Chris' scent; he smelled like sweat and rose scented soap that was fading from the last hotel he had stayed in. 

"Thank you. I would just like to have a bath and then talk to Jesse." Lyla sat on one side of the full-sized bed. Nathan had finished giving her a checkup and checking her ankle and now stood at the wash basin and washed his hands while Mary and Chris asked her questions.

Mary sat to the left of Lyla and tried to comfort the young woman from the busying 10 days. "Lyla, Jesse is in jail, awaiting trial. He has no control over you, now."

Lyla closed her eyes and shook her head. "Why won't people stop saying that? Jesse would never hurt me."

Sitting in the wooden chair, next to the closet door, Chris leaned forward, his fingers rubbed the brim of his black hat, brushing the dust off of it. "Lyla, do you remember how your dress got ripped? Did Jesse do that?" He stared at the long tear in material that had been her skirt. A long gash up the side, exposing equally ripped petticoats. 

Turning her head slightly to hear Chris better, Lyla's hands felt along the material of her skirt. "My dress? No,"

"No, you don't remember or no, he didn't rip it?"

She thought for a moment. Her head hurt from the long ride and lack of rest. "No, Jesse didn't rip my dress. We came across these men. Before we stopped in that town. They were dirty and mean. One of them, I think he was called Simms. He threatened Jesse. The others were so loud and scary. They pulled on my dress and lifted it up and then, I heard it. One of them tried to-- he was saying such terrible things to me." Her hands flew to her ears as tears rolled down her ashen cheeks. "Jesse warned them." She nodded. "He was protecting me. They pulled my hair and grabbed me. They ripped my dress. But the last man. I heard him shout terrible things to Jesse, as he took me back to the wagon. He was still alive when we rode off. It was self-defense. Why is he in jail, if it was self-defense? The man was alive." Her hands shook as she replaced them in her lap, fisting her fingers into the dirty, blue material of her skirt.

Sighing and trying to find the words to tell her discreetly, Chris could only put the truth as nicely as possible without sounding too harsh. "Well, that last man died, not too long after we came across your trail. He claimed Jesse robbed them and then killed his two companions."

A look of confusion swept across her face, as if she wasn't believing what Chris was telling her. Lyla shook her head.

Nathan had watched the conversation but remained silent. Straightening from leaning against the wash counter, he cleared his throat. "Speakin of Jesse. I spose I'll go check on him."

"Thank you, Nathan." Mary's voice was soft and sweet and pleasant to Lyla's ears.

Chris waited until Nathan left the room and guestimated how much time he had before Sheriff Drake would want to see his sister. "Lyla, that morning we found you, in the schoolhouse," Chris shifted uneasily, "did Jesse force himself on you?" He watched her expression as she understood the question and formulated her answer.

Lyla took took a deep breath and let it out, slightly annoyed. "No. Jesse would never-!"

"Alright." Remembering what the sheriff had told the seven, in the saloon, Chris tread lightly. "How much did you know about Sheriff McCall? Did you ever have any interaction with him?"

Mary rested a gentle hand on Lyla's own hand, that rested in her lap. "Take your time, Lyla. We could even talk about this a little later, when you're feeling up to it?" Glancing at Chris, Mary nodded in silent asking. She knew Lyla was tired and hurt from the long, hectic journey and was not about to let even Chris Larabee overexert her.

Smiling lightly at Mary's suggestion, Lyla shook her head. "I didn't really know him. We spoke a few times but, that was it. Jesse didn't want me around him. Especially, when he was drunk."

Chris's brow furrowed. "What do you mean? How often was he drunk?"

"More than he was sober."

Chris's mind began to put a few pieces of the puzzle together. "Do you know what happened between Jesse and the sheriff, the day he died?" He knew he was pushing her and could see her expressions confirming that Jesse's past was not a happy one, with his father. 

Shaking her head, this time more slowly, Lyla thought back to an argument between father and son that worried her. "No. But, I did hear them argue."

"Do you know what about?"

Lyla nodded. "Me."

Mary grew concerned. "Did they argue alot?"

Lyla nodded, again. "Not too long before he was killed, Jesse and I were sitting on the porch, of his father's ranch. We were talking about books and I was listening to him read me a dime novel about Davy Crockett." She smiled as she remembered that hot afternoon. From one moment to the other, her expressions changed from happy to frightened. "The sheriff came home and told Jesse he neglected his chores to fool around with me. Jesse disagreed but Mr. McCall told him to fetch my wagon and take me home. Jesse told me he'd be right back so, I waited and listened. I heard just awful screaming. They were shouting from far away, it seemed. Jesse was screaming for him to stop." Trying not to sob, Lyla fisted her hands tighter into her skirt, determined to finish the story before someone else walked in and stopped her. "I heard this sound, like a whip to a horse. Jesse was screaming!" Her hands flew to her ears again, as if trying to stop the sound from memory, this time her soft sobs burst into painful tears. She hadn't realised that Chris and Mary saw her tears roll down her cheeks and fall onto her dusty, ripped dress she had wanted to get out of. Calming herself down, she finished. "It seemed like hours but, when it stopped, Mr. McCall put me in the wagon and took me back to town." She felt gentle, feminine hands holding her and caressing her soft brown hair as her head rest on Mary's shoulder.

"Alright, Lyla. Thank you. I'll let you rest, now. I'll check on you, later. Alright?" Chris's anger boiled. He grit his teeth and stared at a spot on the floor, choking on the sobs he and Mary listened to. How could a sheriff beat his own son like that, and be so bold to do it in daylight, with company present? He thought it was time to talk to Vin and the others, perhaps have a conversation with Jesse, providing the young outlaw would open up about a past event.

A knock on the door before the door opened, revealing Sheriff Drake, his hat in his hands. He saw that Lyla had stopped her crying, as soon as she heard the door open, and wiped at her tears before he could see. "Lyla, you alright?" Anger touched at his expression as he had never liked to see his little sister cry. 

Clearing her throat, hushing the sobs, Lyla nodded and sat up, leaning away from Mary's shoulder. "I'm fine. Just a little tired, is all." Lyla hadn't let go of Mary's hand and squeezed it, indicating that she was scared. "I'd like a bath, now. And then, a rest. Please." She had refused to break down in front of her older brother, knowing his temper, and get Jesse into even more trouble than needed.

Mary spoke, reassuringly. "Of course. Gentlemen, would you excuse us? It's been a long day, for her." Looking from Chris, who now stood and replaced his hat on his head, to Sheriff Drake, still standing in the doorway. Placing her hands on Lyla's shoulders, Mary helped the fragile young woman to stand. As the door shut behind Chris, she had been ready to catch Lyla from another breakdown, and she had been glad she was. Holding Lyla, in her arms, as the sobs came. Shushing the woman, Mary was beside herself. She had felt sorry for Lyla and all she had been through but felt even more sorry for the man she hadn't met.

~~~~

Chris walked up to the jail and stopped in the doorway. "What happened here?" His eye caught sight of a banged up Jesse, in his cell, with Nathan helping him with a bloody nose. 

Vin sat on the edge of the desk, closest to the door and cradled his rifle in his arms. "Seems Jesse wasn't wantin' to go in the cell, willingly, so..."

"Drake helped him."

Vin nodded. Standing up and turning his back to Nathan and Jesse, he lowered his voice as he told Chris about the bruise he saw. "Last night, after we caught him, again, I thought I saw some marks on his back. Drake has a temper for the boy, it seems."

Chris shook his head. "It wasn't Drake that did those." Walking over to the cell and standing in front of Jesse, Chris looked down at him. "Mind if we talk about your pa?"

Jesse took the handkerchief away from his nose, looking at it to make sure the blood had stopped. "Nothin' to say."

Lowering himself to balance on the balls of his feet, Chris smiled knowingly. "I don't believe that. Just had a talk with Lyla."

Breaking eye contact, Jesse looked away and stared at the bars, leading to the next cell. "Leave her outta this."

"She told me about the fight you had with him, not too long before you shot him."

Jesse shifted, uneasily. 

Chris dared to ask but with Nathan and Vin with him, Jesse wouldn't have much of a choice. "She said she heard him beatin' on you, that day. Maybe you deserved it and she's coverin' up for you. Or, she's tellin' the truth. Mind raisin' yer shirt, for me?"

Glaring at Chris, Jesse started to lunge at Chris, ready to fight him, when Nathan caught him by the arm.

"Wait, now." Nathan caught Jesse's eye and shook his head, indicating that would have been a bad idea.

Teeth clenched, Jesse slowly stood up and moved to the bars that separated the two cells, facing them. Placing his hands on them, he waited for one of the three to look at his back. He flinched as he heard Chris's boots stepping behind him and shivered as he felt the back of his shirt being raised. Jesse offered no excuse to what they saw. He had felt so ashamed that his deepest, darkest secret had been exposed and could only hope they wouldn't turn out to be just as ill-tempered as his father or Sheriff Drake.

Chris raised the back of Jesse's blue shirt and swallowed, hard. Deep welts and fading bruises from the few brawls with Sheriff Drake riddled his back. Some had been new but the welts remained clear and present.

Nathan stepped closer to examine Jesse. His tongue darted out to lick his dry lips, as if hoping to have something to say. He found himself at a loss. His eyes stared at the deepest of the welts. Jesse's back had resembled what his own must have looked like, to other people. For the first time in a long while, the shame and horror hit Nathan as he stared at Jesse's back. He had been thinking of asking the question that came to mind but paused when Chris spoke up.

"These deep scars, yer pa do that the day Lyla was with you?" Chris's finger traced the longest and deepest scar across Jesse's back, causing Jesse to flinch, again. He waited for Jesse to confirm or deny the question.

Jesse swallowed and nodded. "We were in the barn. He was drunk. He yelled at me for not bein' fast enough with gettin' the riggin'. Shoved me against the wagon." Jesse paused. The bad taste in his mouth choked him. He hadn't told anyone, not even Lyla, about what happened that day. "He grabbed the reins and just started hittin' me. I begged him to stop. They just kept gettin' harder and harder, couldn't move away from them." He closed his eyes as Chris lowered the material. "I came to and he had already taken the wagon. Slept out in the barn for a few days."

Chris took a deep breath and let it go. "The judge that presided, do you remember his name? Where he came from?"

Jesse thought. He had wanted to put Echo and the events of what happened behind him. "Judge..... Carson. Don't remember where he came from."

"You show him your back?" Vin stood at the cell door and leaned against it. 

Shaking his head, Jesse didn't bother turning around. "He wasn't interested."

Chris turned and walked out of the jail, stopping on the walk, to cool down. He had hoped it was just a ploy to get more people on Jesse's behalf, only to find out that it wasn't just a ploy but a plea. For help. He leaned against the post that held the awning up and stared out at the street. Vin came to stand beside him. "I'll have Mary wire Judge Carson and see if he's willing to make a trip down here."

"Double jeopardy?"

"Think he might've gotten an unfair trial. If he wasn't heard at the first trial, I'd think he deserves an appeal. Don't you?"

Vin shifted. "You think you can get him acquitted?"

Chris shrugged. "At the very least, take the price off his head. Perhaps keep him from swingin'." Chris smirked as he thought about presenting the new evidence and the change of judges. He was thankful that he didn't have to add the charge of raping a blind woman, to the bill. "Jesse didn't rape Lyla. It was consensual."

Vin's brow knitted together and then released. He had watched Billy and a few other boys from school playing with a stick and big, round metal rim, rolling it down the street. "Could be bad news for Jesse if the Sheriff finds out. Consensual or not. He ain't the sheriff's favourite, right about now."

Chris sighed. He spotted Mary walking back to her office, from the hotel. Pushing off of the post, he caught up to her and held the door to the paper open for her, before joining her inside.

~~~~

Closing the door behind him, Chris turned and removed his hat, letting it dangle on his back. "How's she doin?"

Mary turned around to see the man who followed her in. "She's fine. Resting. It took awhile to calm her down but, once she had a hot bath and something to eat, she managed to fall asleep, just fine. She wanted me to ask how Jesse is." 

"A few scrapes but, he's fine." Chris answered. "I need you to wire a circuit judge, for Echo. Name's Carson. He tried Jesse for the murder of his father, three years ago and sentenced him to hang. Jesse says the judge wasn't interested in his side of the story. Sounds like a rushed job, to me. Maybe Judge Travis can get the first trial thrown out."

Mary sighed but understood his point. "It'll be hard to do but, I'll wire both, tonight. You aren't giving Jesse to the Sheriff?"

Chris looked stone-faced. "He's too eager to lynch Jesse for the murder of his friend. Regardless of the outcome here, I don't think Jesse would make it to Echo, alive."

"Do you think Lyla might be able to help?"

Chris wasn't worried about Lyla's testimony but that coupled with what he, Vin and Nathan saw, might change Judge Carson's mind. "Lyla could give an alibi to Jesse but, that'd probably be it. I'd hate to put her in that position, if she got that upset with just answering my questions."

Mary nodded. "I see." Folding her arms in attempt to comfort herself, she felt uneasy. "She is obviously beside herself in grief over him. And the sheriff doesn't seem to help matters. We started talking, after you left, and she told me that Jesse has never been anything other than a gentleman to her. For being blind, she was very self-assured. Jesse was helping her to be independent and that was probably why the sheriff didn't want Jesse around her. What do you think it is, Chris?"

"Lyla is a strong young woman. Jesse seems to want to protect her but, at the same time, let her do things for herself. She asked him to take her away from Echo and her brother, even though she knew Sheriff Drake would chase them to Hell and back. Jesse did it without a second thought." Chris wasn't one to get involved in anyone else's troubles so easily. He was only willing to go as far as helping get a blind woman away from a kidnapper and outlaw. However, he hadn't counted on the sheriff having an alternate motive, in the retrieval of his sister. One thing was for sure, he didn't enjoy being in the middle of a situation that didn't involve him.

Mary shook her head, trying to rid herself of the thoughts that had befallen the young couple. Her brow furrowed. "Love shouldn't be this unsettling."

"It shouldn't, but it is." 

With a sigh, Mary gathered her thoughts and took two steps towards the door. "I'll go wire the judges." In coming closer to him, she was halted and gently pulled into an embrace with the man in black. Wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his tough chest, she held onto him for as long as she could. She could hear his heartbeat and feel the calmness of his even breathing. She stayed there, too comfortable to move. It had been a long time since she held someone like that. Equally long since some held her.

"Thank you, Mary." Chris whispered. The smell of her hair was sweet and soft and clean. He closed his eyes and for a moment, he wanted to call her "Sarah." He liked the way she felt against him. Not many women were able to sate his feeling of comfort, but Mary had managed. He had come to have feelings for Mary and she him but neither had voiced their feelings nor made any attempt to suggest they had any feeling of love for the other. He could feel her fingers in his hair as his arms wrapped around her slender waist. Before he pulled away, he was surprised to find that she had shifted upward to kiss him. She couldn't deny it any longer, the feeling that she wanted him. 

Mary was equally surprised when he kissed her back, neglecting the awkward setting between the two. 

~~~~

JD sat at the desk, next to the door, and read the daily paper, yawning. He had been waiting to be relieved by Josiah and Buck. They had been late. For the first forty minutes of waiting, JD had smirked as he stole glances at the younger but older outlaw who had bested him at drawing his gun. Even though it had been Vin and Chris to apprehend him, JD couldn't help but feel some pride over the young man who had kidnapped a younger, blind woman and roughed up a sheriff, in the process. 

Jesse sat in the corner, on his bunk, and watched JD, out of the corner of his eye. He had been just as bored, sitting in the cell all day with nothing to do. With his legs bent and arms resting on his knees, he sighed and closed his eyes to rest. He opened them again as JD had yawned audibly. "I don't spose I could get somethin' to read? A book or somethin'?" 

"I didn't think an outlaw knew how to read." JD snorted back.

"Don't you know how?" Jesse spoke casually.

JD stood up, the remark catching his attention. "I heard you were supposed to be faster than Mr. Larabee." JD rested his hands on the two pistols on either side of his hips. Striding over to where Jesse's cell was, he stopped at the outer cell door, keeping his distance. "Yet, here you are. Guess you were just talkin' big, sonny."

Smirking, Jesse turned his head to look at JD. "Faster than you to hold on to your toys, boy." 

"Yea," JD took the remaining two steps in, to stand at the cell door, "then how come I'm the one lookin' into the cell?"

Jesse shrugged. "Wanna rematch?"

JD puffed up. "I ain't the one who's gonna swing for kidnappin'." JD smirked as Jesse had nothing more to say. As he turned around to see the jail door open and Vin step in, followed by Josiah, his smirk was erased as Jesse retorted.

"Saved by the relief."

Turning back to say something to Jesse, Vin cleared his throat and acknowledged JD for shift change. JD turned back as Vin removed his hat. "Buck comin'?"

Vin shook his head. "We switched. He and the sheriff were escortin' Lyla to supper." As he said the words, he watched Jesse's reaction and expression to hearing Lyla's name mentioned with the sheriff. "Casey was lookin' for ya."

JD shrugged and glanced back at an unamused Jesse, still sitting in the corner of his cell. "He's got a smart mouth on him, tonight."

Josiah sauntered over to the empty chair at the second desk, across from where JD usually sat. "I'm sure we can find somethin' positive to fill the time with, JD." He nodded over to Jesse, who watched him sit down.

Closing the door behind JD, Vin laid his sawed-off Winchester on the sheriff's desk. "Doin' alright, Jesse?"

"Nothin' a certain key and a look in the other way, won't fix."

Josiah smiled at the suggestion. "Even the biggest lion in the jungle can't wish he were a tiny mouse, some days."

Jesse raised an eyebrow at Josiah's reference. "What does that mean?"

"To be a man, sometimes, you need to stand up and face the fire you've started for yourself." Josiah nodded and winked at Jesse, who sighed and looked away as if being slapped in the face.

Shaking his head, Jesse scoffed, again, at what Josiah had told him. "I didn't kidnap Lyla."

Vin poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot, on the stove. "Where were you two gonna go? If we hadn'ta caught up to you?" Silently, he held up the cup in asking if Josiah wanted a cup and was politely turned down. Blowing on the hot liquid, he glanced up at Jesse who was still eying Josiah.

Biting his lower lip, Jesse debated telling the tracker anything. "Why? So you'll know where to look, iffin' we disappear, again?" 

Josiah looked up from reading his bible and took note of just how smart-mouthed Jesse was, for being a self-proclaimed "fast" outlaw. "Makes no difference to Vin, son. It seems he could find you in a hornet's nest." Making eye contact with the modest tracker, he glanced back at Jesse who glared at him through iron bars.

"My uncle has a place out in Nebraska. Figured we'd head there, first." Jesse debated for several quiet minutes about telling the men where he would have taken Lyla. Vin had already seen and heard his deepest secret so, there wasn't much stopping him from learning the answer to his question. "Don't matter now. I'm goin' to Hell. Ain't I?" Nodding to the Preacher, Jesse eyed the man's rosary around his neck and wondered if there was such thing as salvation.

Vin stepped forward and leaned against the outer cell door. "Perhaps Judge Travis could get you a reprieve." He tried to sound positive and nodded in hopeful affirmation when Jesse looked up at him.

"Travis?"

"You know him?" Vin raised his cup for a sip.

Jesse shook his head and looked away in embarrassment. "It ain't important."

Vin swallowed another sip of his hot coffee and pushed off of the bars. "He might be able to help."

"Lyla deserves better than me. It don't matter who the judge is. That damn sheriff's no better'n pa. He'd never let us go." Jesse hushed before he said anymore. Leaning his head back and closing his eyes, Jesse sighed to himself and thought about seeing Lyla in the dress he had bought for her, before he was hung for murder.

"What d'ya mean? You know Travis, don't ya?"

"I know him. Met him the other night in Willow Ridge. He uh-, forget it. If I tell you, you tell the sheriff, he takes it out on Lyla. She don't need that." Jesse didn't move or open his eyes to see Vin staring at him, trying to figure out what he was saying.

Taking another sip, Vin shook his head. "There's no love between me and the sheriff. You sayin' you and Lyla are--?"

Jesse opened his eyes and tilted his head to glance over at the smart tracker. "That mornin' you found us, was our first time. Didn't even get to consummate. For the best, I spose."

"Got proof?"

"In my saddlebag."

Vin turned to set his cup down, on the sheriff's desk and then moved over to where Jesse's belongings were kept, next to the gun case. Grabbing the saddlebag and placing it on the desk Josiah still sat at, he opened the first side and dug through it. Down at the bottom, had been a folded piece of paper that, when unfolded, held legal writing and three signatures. Vin glanced at it and handed it to Josiah for confirmation that it was legal.

Josiah read the document completely. "Married, huh? I don't suppose Sheriff Drake would like this one bit."

"My ma made me promise to keep a lady in tact. So, we found the judge, in town. I paid the five dollars and made it legal. I love Lyla. I wouldn't ever hurt her, soul or otherwise." Lowering his head, Jesse felt ashamed at what he had done. 

Vin felt sick for knowing the secret Jesse kept. His mouth went dry as he thought of a way to tell Chris about it, without involving the sheriff or harming Lyla, any further. 

 

Continued.


	5. Chapter 5

"Thank you for escorting me, Mr. Wilmington." Lyla smiled and turned her head in his direction. Mary had helped her pick out a dinner dress and brushed and curled her hair so that she looked nice in the restaurant. Her hands nervously smoothed her dress as she listened for familiar voices. "Will Mrs. Travis and Mr. Larabee be joining us? Or, the other gentlemen?" Buck sat to her left and her brother on her right. She had hoped for Vin, so that she could get a feel for the man who was to be her neighbour and confidant, in time of need. 

Buck glanced away, nervous of what to say in the presence of Charlie. "Well, ma'am, Chris has some business to take care of and Mrs. Travis has been getting the morning paper ready. Vin and Josiah have guard duty at jail and Nathan and Ezra are helpin' a rancher. But, I reckon they'll join you in the mornin." Before he could say any more, Buck shoveled a forkful of mashed potatoes into his mouth. He had knocked on her door, earlier in the evening, to see how she was. She had enjoyed his company and liked the sound of his voice so, he was happy to be invited to escort her to dinner and hopefully quell any harshness between she and her brother.

Hearing mention of the jail, where Jesse had been kept, Lyla's breath caught. She hadn't liked the association of the two but knew it was the safest place for him to be, until after the trial. "Of course." Lyla slowly reached for where her fork was and then carefully felt for the side of her plate. She flinched away as Charlie tried to help her find where the food was located on her plate. Lowering her voice, she turned her head towards her brother, "I can feed myself, Charlie." Lyla had come to be self-sufficient since meeting Jesse and had come to enjoy doing things for herself.

Charlie frowned but let go of her hand. "Just trying to help." His tone was calm and collected, like Jesse's had been but Charlie had let his tension slip, more than once, and it had become visible that he was scaring Lyla. He had bathed and shaved and had clean clothes on, as well as the pine scent Lyla had liked so much as a child. "You used to want me to help you with your meals." Charlie couldn't stand the fact that his little sister was, indeed, growing up and he couldn't stop it. 

In a nervous habit, Lyla raised a hand to her hair and touched a curl, tucked behind her ear. It had been a twitch of something to do when she felt uneasy in a situation and wanted to leave. Since losing her sight to an illness, Lyla felt more and more unsettled but, it had stopped when she met the one person that hadn't treated her like an invalid; Jesse. Without him, she felt just as scared and alone as the day she lost her sight. "I'm not a child, anymore. Thank you." Her chin quivered and she bit her bottom lip to stop the movement. 

Charlie leaned forward, gripping his knife, angrily. "I suspect McCall had somethin' to do with that? He could have had ulterior motives, Lyla. The boy's nothin' but trouble."

Lyla's hands shook visibly. "Please, let's just eat, Charlie." Her embarrassment remained hidden to everyone around her, except herself. She wanted to scream and kick and yell at Charlie for his hatred of her husband. She had wanted this entire commotion over with. 

Clearing his throat, Buck hadn't wanted to add anything, in case of backlash. He kept eating and glancing over at Lyla to make sure she was calm enough to continue. 

"Perhaps, when we're back home, you'll get these fool ideas outta yer head and marry a good man." Charlie had taken a bite but, in chewing and swallowing, voiced his opinion that Lyla hadn't been ready to hear.

Lyla, who had yet to eat anything, was becoming more and more upset by the conversation. "Good man like you?"

Chewing his next bite, Charlie didn't wait to swallow before clarifying. "Someone who'll treat you like a lady should be treated."

Lyla sighed. "You'll never know how well Jesse treated me." She wanted to get up and walk away from her brother and his narrow point of view but she was unwilling to let either Charlie or Buck see her stumble and fall over the attempt. In reaching for her glass of water, her hand had bumped it, knocking the glass over and sending the water spilling over the table. Hearing the sound of the glass hit the wood table and hushed chatter of the people around them silenced, Lyla's frustration with having no sight and her brother treating her as he did only added to the shame. Leaning over to her left, she placed a calm hand on the table and whispered, "I'm very tired. I'd like to go back to my room, now. Please."

Charlie stood and reached for her arm to help her from the table. "I'll see my sister to her room, Mr. Wilmington."

"No offense, sheriff, but I don't think the lady is lookin' for more of your tongue, tonight." Buck had wanted to stay out of it but saw in her expression just how upset Charlie was making Lyla. He stood up to meet Charlie's gaze and take Lyla by the hand to escort her out of the restaurant. 

Charlie scowled at Buck. "Stay outta this. She's my sister and I'll take care of her the way I see fit." Reaching over and grabbing Lyla's arm, he had been too angry to see how he was treating her in front of other people.

Buck paused and turned around, drawing his gun from its holster. "Even if your way is scarin' the daylights outta her?"

"Charlie, please, don't cause trouble here. He's just taking me back to my room. Mister Wilmington?" Lyla had guessed what was happening and stepped back, away from the two men. 

Releasing his hold on Lyla's arm, Charlie watched Buck escort her out of the building. He took a big swallow of his beer, slammed the glass down on to the table and paid for the meal. His anger boiled and his thoughts ran rampant in his head. Standing on the walk, in front of the restaurant, Charlie looked out at the night on the street. People had been closing up and going home for the evening. Scanning the street for Chris or Vin, he spotted the tracker sitting out front of the jail, playing his harmonica. Striding over to the jail, Charlie set his jaw firm and made his way to the door. When Vin stepped in front of him, Charlie paused long enough to tell the tracker his intentions. "I'm here to see McCall."

Vin cleared his throat and planted himself. "Sorry sheriff but, visiting hours are over."

"He has my sister believin' his lies. Tells her that she can live as anyone else and then steals her away in the middle of the night. Gets her involved in all kinds of trouble." Charlie hissed.

Vin didn't move from in front of the door. "He says he didn't harm her."

"He's an outlaw and murderer. They lie." Charlie's anger grew but he knew better not to strike the other man between he and where his prisoner sat. "I wanna talk to my prisoner, now."

The sound of boots walking slowly and evenly, up to where Charlie and Vin stood, were followed by a voice asking if Vin was having any trouble. Chris had watched the exchange from a few buildings away. The man in black stopped a few feet from them and watched Charlie's reaction to him.

"I wanna talk to McCall."

Chris turned and glanced through the window of the door to see Jesse lying down and rolled away from the bars. "Jesse's already caught and waiting for the judge." Looking back over at Charlie, he finished, "Not too many more answers you're going to get from him. Go on back to the saloon, Sheriff. No sense in starting a brawl, tonight." 

Charlie shook his head. "I'm goin' in there and talkin' to my prisoner. And, I'll go through you," pointing at Chris and then at Vin "or you, to do it."

"Suit yerself, Sheriff." Vin stepped out of the way and sighed as Charlie shoved past him, storming straight up to the cell Jesse was sleeping in. "Somehow, I just figured there'd be trouble, tonight."

"Seems to be a lot of that goin' around." Chris stepped closer and watched the exchange between Charlie and Jesse. "Mary says the judge'll be here in three days."

"Hope Jesse lasts that long." The two glanced at each other in silent agreement but watched the sheriff, intently, while he was around Jesse.

~~~~~

_Sloan sat at his desk, leaning back in his chair. His sandy blond hair had been freshly trimmed as well as his mustache, giving him the cleaned up gunfighter look. Finishing cleaning his Jennings rifle, he scolded his son of 17 years. "It's time to start doin' some growin', Jesse. I ain't gonna keep beggin' your teacher to let you stay in class if you won't do the work. You don't have any excuses now. Your ma's gone, Beth's dead, dammit, Jesse! Make somethin' of your worthless life, son. Otherwise, you an' yer friends are gonna end up right over there," pointing to the one cell the town had, Sloan was hoping to scare his only child straight._

_Shaking his head in disbelief, Jesse took a deep breath. He stood across from his father, the desk in the middle. "I'm not the one that ran away instead of protectin' Beth. You coulda stopped her from gettin' killed. But, instead, you just stood there while some lowlife aimed his gun at her and shot her, all for a lousy pair of deuces! An' ma! You let her go because you weren't man enough to admit that you wouldn't stop Beth from gettin' killed! You ain't no more a sheriff than you are a poker player!" He huffed and panted. It had taken him six years to gather the courage to confront his own father for letting a card game decide if his older half-sister lived or died. He had been a boy of 12 then, and now he was only one day away from 18._

_Pushing up from his chair, Sloan closed the space between them and grabbed Jesse by the arm. He shoved and dragged his son over to the cell and pushed him into the middle, slamming the door shut behind him. "I put my life on the line for this country, took your ma and her daughter in to make her a respectable woman, only to have a half-wit boy slap me in the face for tryin'! I ain't no saint, Jesse Duell, but by God, I ain't gonna sit here and let you disrespect me. I'm still your father, boy. I loved your ma AND your sister. I'm doin' the best I can, tryin' to raise you up to be a good man but you let your mouth get in the way, instead of takin' care of things like you're supposed to. I don't wanna see you behind these bars, for somethin' that you can't take back, boy. That gun ain't gonna keep you outta trouble. It'll just make is worse." Sloan pointed to the Colt .45 at Jesse's right hip, then locked eyes with his son. They stood there for a speechless moment, neither agreeing to swallow their own pride._

_Jesse stood in the middle of the cell and glared at the older McCall. "The only disrespect you see is all in your head! YOU could have saved Beth. But, you didn't! You could have told Ma you loved her and wanted her to stay but, you didn't! You're what's tearin' this family apart, not me! I heard you tellin' her, you wished she hadn't come west, or that she wouldn'ta had me! You're the snake!" Jesse felt his anger rising. He felt the hot tears welling up in his eyes but refused to let his father see them fall._

_Opening the door, Sloan grabbed Jesse by the arm and spun him around, towards the open door. Shoving his son to the floor, Sloan reached for the nearest thing he could to teach Jesse a lesson. His hand settled on a pair of shackles that Charlie had placed at the corner of his desk. Pinning Jesse to the floor, on his stomach, he proceeded beating the younger with the shackles, paying little to no attention to the screams that erupted from his child. "You'll respect me, boy, or I'll beat the life outta ya, until you do! Do you hear me?! I won't allow you to make a fool of me, in my town!" The cuff end of the shackle struck Jesse harder and harder with no end in sight._

_Moaning in pain and screaming for his father to stop, Jesse pushed up, off of the floor and sent Sloan flailing backwards. "I didn't make you a fool, Papa. You made yerself one when you hired that no-good deputy." He panted, hard. He had been nearly knocked unconscious by the hard beating and it had taken all of his energy to fight off his father but, Jesse was not one to let himself give up. Getting to his feet and standing there, shakily, in the middle of the tiny jail, Jesse held his hands up to convey "no contest" but to his horror, saw the feral look in his father's eyes as the elder reached up to his desk for the Jennings. "Papa, don't. Please. I don't want to, but I will. Stop!" Jesse's eyes filled with tears as he watched, in slow motion, as Sloan continued to reach for the rifle and started to swing it around to aim it at his son. His reflexes snapped and made Jesse jump from the report of the Colt. His breath caught and went out of him as he stared, horrified, at his father's lifeless body hitting the floor, beside his desk._

Jesse woke up. Opening his eyes and seeing the familiar scene of the jail cell, around him. Taking a deep breath, he looked around the room and saw a tall figure leaning against the post that held the keys. "Pa?" In a moment of clarity, he could see that it was one of the seven men that rode with Charlie Drake, to capture him. 

Buck had been standing there, watching the prisoner twitch and moan, in his sleep, for the past hour. His brow furrowed as Jesse had mumbled something in his sleep. A plea. "Conscience botherin' you?"

Jesse didn't answer. Instead, he turned away and faced the wall.

~~~~~

Vin sat down at the table Chris had taken refuge at. It had been early morning and the sun was barely up, like the rest of the town. "Well, I didn't hear anything from Lyla, last night. Checked on her, a few minutes ago when the sheriff brought her up some coffee. Said they needed a talk. Buck said dinner didn't go so well." Stretching himself out and leaning back in the chair, he sipped at his cup of coffee while Chris listened to him. 

Chris had spent much of the night, sitting there and thinking. When the saloon closed up for the night, he sat outside the jail and chatted with Buck, who had taken over watch for Vin. "Back when I was courtin' Sarah, Hank didn't want me around his little girl. Claimed I was too rough and rowdy for her. He tried so hard to protect her from livin' her own life that he smothered her out, completely. As soon as we got married, she wanted to come out west with me. Hank missed out on a lot of things because of his hatred for me. There's something about this that just doesn't fit, Vin. Either Jesse isn't sayin' it or Drake won't let it come to light."

"Well, this piece probably won't be so easy, either. Jesse and Lyla criss-crossed their way across the territory lookin' for a justice." Vin took another sip.

Chris's interest perked. "Married?"

Vin nodded. "Afraid so. It seems we dragged them apart from their marital courtin'."

"Great." Chris sighed and fixated on his own cup of coffee. 

"There's more. Seems the judge they did find for the services was Judge Travis. Jesse had the paper in his saddlebag." Vin had recalled how almost off-handed Jesse had been in saying they were married but what had surprised him the most was how deflated Jesse had been about being captured. He had tried to get away, several times but Vin had a feeling that the youth let himself get caught, just to be close to the woman he loved. "You know, I think Jesse wanted to be caught."

Chris smirked. "This comin' from the man who's so eager to get back to Tascosa and get his own neck stretched?"

"I saw the look in his eyes when Drake called his name out, in the General Store. That was terror, Chris. And not just because we caught up with him. He's afraid of Sheriff Drake and that town, for some reason or another." Rubbing the incoming whiskers on his chin, as he hadn't shaved yet, Vin started to see what Chris had been talking about. 

Nodding, Chris finished his coffee and set the cup down, on the table. "What do you say, we have another heart to heart with Mr. McCall?"

Vin agreed.

~~~~~

Ezra had set up a table and was dealing the next round of cards to he and Jesse when Chris and Vin entered the jail. "I say you play a good game of poker, young Jesse. Wherever did you learn such a trade?"

Sitting back, Jesse became quiet, staring at the cards still being dealt to him. "Back in Echo, Papa caught this tinhorn skimmin' the deck. The town was ready to lynch him so, Papa locked him up for a few days, until the tempers died down. But, while he was in jail, he taught me how to play cards. When the time was up, Papa told him never to come back. After that," scooping up his cards and organising them in his hand, Jesse's mood turned sombre, "after that, it was a different time." He focused on his hand of cards.

"You play it well, my boy." Ezra smiled, impressed that Jesse could keep him in check for as many hands as he had.

Chris came to stand behind and to the right of Ezra. "Mind answerin' a few questions, about Echo, Jesse?"

"Fold." Placing the cards faced down on the table, outside of the bars, Jesse moved away from the table and walked back to the cot. He knew it had been a bad idea to bring up his past, in the first place but now Chris wanted to elaborate on the hurt. "I'm feelin' kinda tired, right now."

Chris walked into the cell next to Jesse's and leaned against the separating bars. "What are you afraid of, in Echo? It couldn't be from hangin', otherwise, you wouldn't have taken the risk to get Lyla outta there. Your Pa's dead. So, what's left? Are you afraid of Sheriff Drake?" Chris paused as Jesse turned to stare at him with wide eyes. "We can't help ya, if you don't give us the whole story. Did Drake have something to do with your Pa's death?"

Jesse swallowed. "No."

"You were talkin' in your sleep, last night." Vin stepped forward but kept his distance from the cell. "Was Beth your sister?"

Jesse turned away and faced the wall. "She died when I was 12. Papa had just come back from the war. Somethin' was off. She--" Jesse searched for the words but came up empty. He felt he had said too much and that there would be recourse that would ultimately work against him with the judge.

Chris watched Jesse's reaction to the questions and decided to try another approach. "Back in Willow Ridge, you had the chance to shoot any one of us. Why aim for the candy jar? Why not shoot the Sheriff, or JD, the man whose gun you took?" Chris studied Jesse's profile. "You didn't mean to kill your pa, did you?"

Shaking his head, Jesse felt the shame burn his cheeks. "I begged him to stop."

"Beatin' you?"

"We fought off and on, that whole day. He wanted me to pay attention in my schoolin', instead of my gun. Kept tellin' me I was disrespectin' what he was tryin' to teach me and that he'd help me 'understand' better. I barely had enough strength in me to push him off. But, then he reached for his Jennings. I begged him not to. The next thing I knew,--" Jesse sighed. He felt like a big weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. "Y'all don't understand. I had to be fast. Papa didn't do nothin' to save Beth. He wasn't goin' to, anyway." Whether or not they believed his account of what happened would be hard to say. He remained facing the wall, too ashamed to turn around or make eye contact with any of the three men who heard his story, just yet. "I don't suppose I could know how Lyla's doin'?"

Chris pushed off of the bars. "We'll see what we can do. Meantime, cool your heels." 

Jesse finally turned and watched Chris walk out of the cell and then the building. A questionable expression on his face.

~~~~~

"Mister Larabee, a moment of your time, please?" Mary called to Chris from the doorway of The Clarion. She had spotted him coming out of the jail and heading down the street to the hotel. She had wanted to share the news she had received from Judge Gregory Carson, the judge who presided over Jesse's first trial.

Joining her inside, Chris removed his hat and shut the door behind him. "Any news from the Judge?"

Mary led him back to her personal desk, in her quarters, and removed a wire she had received. "Plenty. The judge says the findings stand. He found Jesse to be evasive when questioned about the day he shot his father. Plus, Jesse didn't seem to be too apologetic about the killing, either."

"Two different stories. Jesse said the judge never asked what happened, from his point of view. Only two witnesses to what actually happened and one of them can't talk. Since Jesse was the defendant, that leaves Sheriff Drake as the one speakin' for Sheriff McCall." Chris voiced his thoughts on what might have played out, in the first trial. 

Mary stared down at the return wire. "If Jesse really was being beaten by his father, why wouldn't he tell the judge?" Confusion played on her expression as she looked from the paper, up into his eyes. 

Chris took the paper from her and stared at it, in thought. "Maybe he didn't feel safe, in the company that was there. I need you to wire him again and ask why he didn't dig deeper, without the interference of the Sheriff. I have a hunch, Drake prevented Carson from hearing Jesse's side of things."

"How can you be so sure?"

"While we were in Willow Ridge, Drake said Jesse would pull away from anything dealing with his father and that day. When Vin and I questioned him, just now, he did but he answered us, even though, he knows the outcome's still the same. He has no reason to lie to a perfect stranger, unless he's bein' forced." Chris shifted.

Mary's brow furrowed. "If Jesse killed his father, why would Sheriff Drake keep him from coming clean to the judge?"

Chris shook his head. For once he was dumbfounded. "Maybe, he didn't kill his pa?" A million thoughts ran through his head. Several different scenarios of how the story might have unfolded, but all ended with Sheriff McCall being shot and killed by Jesse. Yet, something made him wonder. 

"I'm not following." Mary looked back at the wire, thinking Chris saw something in it that she had missed. When she looked up again, Chris was walking back to the door. "Chris?"

Chris paused and turned back to Mary. "I'd like to talk to Lyla, again. Would you be willin' to talk to her, with me?"

Mary had been taken aback by his offer. She had sat in, on the first talk, due to helping Lyla get settled though, she never expected to be asked for a second help. "Sure. Yes."

"Good. I think she might be more relaxed, if you're there. I want to talk to Jesse and then Sheriff Drake. We'll talk to Lyla this evening, before dinner." Chris opened the door and stepped out. He headed back to the jail, to ask Jesse a few more questions he had thought of while Mary told him about the wire. 

 

Continued.


	6. Chapter 6

Mary knocked on Lyla's door at half past three. "Lyla, it's Mary Travis and Chris Larabee. May we come in?" It was quiet for a moment and then something knocked over with a thud, from inside. Mary knocked again. "Lyla? Are you alright?" Mary met eyes with Chris and stepped back as he drew his gun and reached for the door. 

Chris turned the knob and eased the door open, careful to make sure Lyla had not been in the way. "Lyla? Lyla, it's Chris." Taking a step into the room, he quickly panned the room and sighed in relief. Giving the signal to Mary that it was alright to enter, he holstered his gun and stepped cautiously over to where Lyla sat, on the floor, feeling around herself for the wash basin and pitcher she had knocked over. "Lyla? Are you alright?" Helping her up and back over to sit on the bed while Mary picked up the pitcher and basin and stand, Chris looked her over for anything out of the ordinary.

"I'm fne. I guess I must have slipped." Lyla smiled but was more embarrassed than anything else. Her cheeks blushed as her hand nervously went to a curl in her hair. He smelled clean, and like fresh soap. She smiled as he sat down next to her, on the bed. "How is Jesse?" She had finally found her courage enough to calm herself and ask the question aloud. "I'd like to talk to him, if I could?" She looked up and in the general direction of Chris, listening to him breathe. 

Chris looked over at Mary, who took the chair, next to the uprighted stand and basin for water. When he looked back, Lyla was facing him, almost looking at him. "Jesse's doin' fine, Lyla. I have a few questions to ask you, if you don't mind?" He had been caught off guard by her amber eyes.

Lyla shook her head. "Why do you bother, so much?" She had been confused since the first time Chris questioned her about Jesse and his father. "You don't think Jesse's guilty, do you?" She swallowed, in hopes he would confirm her theory. "Please, Mister Larabee, will you help him?" With conviction in her eyes, she pleaded as best as she was able to, knowing the chance it might fall on deaf ears. The room was silent. Sounds from horses and individuals talking seemed far away. The sounds of boots of people walking up and down the halls became too much and had frightened Lyla in the silence. She had thought Charlie would come through the door and try and talk her out of her infatuation with Jesse, again. 

Beforehand, Chris had talked to Mary about her thoughts, updating her on what he and Vin had learned from the young outlaw. For the most part, she had agreed to help with Jesse and Lyla's troubles but worry stopped her from completely committing. She had come to find Lyla a sweet, young woman who may or may not have found her own soulmate. 

"Lyla, does Charlie have anything, other than you being with him, against Jesse?" Chris had decided to give a direct approach. He glanced over at Mary with a look of dread and thought that Lyla might have been pushed into the middle of a war between the two men. 

Sighing, heavily, Lyla placed a hand on her forehead and thought. Shaking her head and replacing her hands in her lap, she hadn't quite thought of anything off the top of her head. "I don't know. Charlie would pull me away from Jesse, when I'd visit."

"How did you meet Jesse, Lyla?" Mary asked, her voice soft and low.

Lyla blushed and smiled, bending her head to cover the redness in her cheeks. "When I got back from my schoolin', the other passenger that was with me, was claimed by her sister, who was waiting for her. The coachman helped me out of the coach and onto the walkway to wait for Charlie. I thought I heard him walking towards me so, I turned around and ran into Jesse. Knocked him to the ground. I told him I was sorry and that I didn't see him. He laughed. After that, he'd call to me and tell me that he was sneaking up on me." She smiled and laughed as she thought back. "He was the only one to see me for who I am and not treat me like I'm a toddler. Jesse has helped me with cooking and cleaning and dressing myself and how to do things for myself. I can ride a horse and plant a garden. All of these things, Charlie would tell me I would hurt myself. Jesse has never let me get hurt. Sure, a few scrapes and bumps on the head or knee but, I can do things by myself."

Taking in her answers, Chris turned to look at the door and listen to outside footsteps. "Thank you for answering our questions, Lyla. I have just one more." Chris turned back and observed how innocent she had been and how scared and lonely the sheriff had made her feel. "The dress Jesse bought, in Willow Ridge, was that to be your wedding gown?"

"Um," Lyla felt nervous and terrified to answer. "Jesse said it was a white dress with pretty lace sleeves. I didn't have the chance to wear it. Do I have to give it back?" Her expression changed from scared to confused and then to distressed. Her breathing became short as she feared what Chris would say.

"Lyla, Jesse told us about the marriage you and he have." Chris's voice was soft and uncharacteristically comforting. Though, when he told her that they knew, Lyla pulled away and became very frightened.

Lyla's eyes widened and she shook her head and recoiling back, into the headboard of her bed, fear overwhelmed Lyla, almost to the point of being inconsolable. "Does Charlie know, too? He'll kill Jesse! That- that morning, Jesse was--" Anxiety had taken over before Chris could correct himself on just who knew what. Tears ran down her cheeks, sobbing became louder and she tried desperately to wipe them away. 

Mary pushed herself off of her chair and knelt at Lyla's feet. "Lyla, calm down. What Chris meant was that Jesse told Vin and Chris and myself. The sheriff doesn't know about you and Jesse being married. But, if you want,--" Mary looked up at Chris and met his eyes. It had gone as she feared and Lyla was believing the worst but not for herself, for Jesse. Touching Lyla's hand and taking a deep breath, Mary tried again to console the young woman.

"Jesse has asked to see you. The judge arrives tomorrow so, Mary and I thought we would give you two tonight to sort things out. Would you like that?" Chris glanced over at the package that still sat where it had been placed by him. He waited for her to listen to his words. Getting up to walk over and retrieve the package, Chris paused long enough to open the brown paper, it had been wrapped in, and hold it up for Mary to see.

Mary's voice was almost a whisper. "Lyla, do you want to go to Jesse, tonight?"

"Yes." Drying her eyes, Lyla nodded. "Yes."

Chris nodded and brought the dress over to the bed. "Mary's going to help you with your dress. I'm going to go have a talk with Charlie and buy you some time. Alright?"

Nodding again, Lyla stood up and reached out for Chris. "Thank you, Mister Larabee." Resting a hand on his forearm, she smiled when she felt him place a comforting hand over hers before leaving the room to find her brother for a chat.

~~~~~

Chris sat down at the table where the sheriff sat brooding. Setting his bottle of whiskey down on the table, he opened the conversation to the other man. "The judge'll be here tomorrow, to try Jesse for the murder of those three boys, north of town." He observed the younger sheriff's attitude on the subject. Aside from mild interest, the other man seemed undeterred from his previous engagement of getting sloshed. Hearing footsteps and looking up to see Buck pull up a chair, they nodded to each other in silent communication.

"Another round, Sheriff?" Buck nodded to the sheriff's half empty glass of beer and glanced over his shoulder to indicated to Inez, one more round and one for himself.

Charlie sipped his beer and narrowed his eyes at both of them. "You boys think Jesse'll come away from this a winner, don'tcha?" Sitting up from his slouched position, he took a deep breath. "This boy ain't nothin' but trouble. Has been since the day he was born. Has no respect for any lawman, or their families. Whatever he's told you, that boy can tell a thousand lies." Concealing a hiccup, Charlie took another drink of his warmed beer. "Well, regardless of what the judge says tomorrow, I'm takin' the boy back to Echo and then, I'm gonna stretch his neck 'til it can't stretch no more."

Buck waited for Inez to set down the new beers and then leave the table before he asked his question. "What if the judge finds him innocent and it was self-defense?"

Sighing and snarling at the dark-haired man, Charlie cleared his throat and grabbed his new glassful. "This judge ain't got the jurisdiction to let that brat off twice." He had made it no secret that he hated Jesse but had been very grateful that Jesse had, inadvertently, made him sheriff of the town he had always wanted as his own. "You may think I'm biased but, I'm tellin' ya, boys, he's a cold-blooded killer that don't care for no one or nothin'."

"Even cold-blooded killers deserve redemption." Josiah sauntered up and leaned against bar, on the corner, across from where the sheriff, Chris and Buck sat. "We all have a chance to mend our broken ways and find peace in the wrongs we've committed." Josiah had spent the afternoon listening in to Chris's talk with the outlaw and hearing the remorse and anger in Jesse's voice. He had listened and shared insight with the young man on love and family and how it changes, not just a man, but a woman as well. 

Charlie shook his head. "Not Jesse. Anyone who murders their own pa, without a second thought, deserve the Hell they get."

"You really don't like him, do you?" Chris sat forward and placed his arms on the table, folded. 

Shaking his head, Charlie straightened. "The kid had a sister, Elizabeth. She was a sassy little pistol. One day, Beth was sent to fetch her brother from the Saloon. He played hooky from school to watch his pa play poker. She found him at the game, causin' trouble. One of the players thought the boy was givin' hints to his pa. Jesse said he was just askin' questions."

Josiah rubbed his thumb against the bristly whiskers on his left jawbone. "The boy was curious. We've all been curious, in our lives."

"Your youthful curiosity ever get someone killed?" The sheriff looked up from his beer. "Anyway, one of the players was the sheriff's friend from the war. The boy was a bit insistent and when it became a bit much, the man stood and drew his gun. Sloan tried to calm him down but the boy--.... the boy just laughed. When that barrel was aimed at the kid, his sister stepped in front of him long enough to get a bullet in her gut. She bled out in the sheriff's arms. Sloan arrested his friend while Jesse made no attempt to take the blame, for any of it."

Chris took another sip of his drink. "Sloan tell you that?"

"I was there. Saw everything. A month later, on the boy's 13th birthday, the deputy Sloan had was killed in a stage accident. I decided to quit wanderin' and put down some roots so, I took the spot. The brat did nothin' but make jokes AND get his sister killed. He ain't so cute and innocent, now, is he?" Charlie shook his head and stared at his beer, as if learning a deep secret from it. "When that boy started lookin' at my sister, with that twinkle in his eye, there ain't no way I'd let him kill her, too."

Thinking about what the sheriff had divulged of both McCall men and what Jesse had told him, Chris had trouble fitting certain pieces together of both stories. "You blame his sister's death on a young boy who made the mistake of laughing at a game of cards?"

Slamming the half-full glass of beer down on the table, Charlie raised his voice. "If the boy had gone to school, like he was supposed ta be, she'd be still alive! That boy don't care about no one or nothin'! He's a bad seed that shoulda been thrown away the day he was born."

~~~~~

Jesse had been restless since earlier, in the afternoon, when he was informed that the judge would arrive the next morning. His heartbeat pounded in his ears. His breath caught, every time the door to the jail opened. And the moments of complete silence were enough to drive a man insane. He sat on the end of the bed with his back against the wall, legs bent to rest his arms on. With his head back, he sighed and closed his eyes.

JD leaned back in his chair, at his desk, and shuffled a deck of cards that Ezra had unburdened himself of. Forming an idea to make amends, he looked over to Jesse. "I hear you're quite the card player. You uh, wanna see if you can beat me?"

Opening his eyes and sighing at the inadvertent insult, Jesse sighed. "I ain't in the mood for beatin' ya."

"You know, Ezra said you were just a fancy-talkin' boy with a big mouth and even bigger ego. But uh- I think yer just a pompous ass!" JD heckled.

Jesse didn't budge. "Is that so? You always believe everything people say? Or, make up your own conclusions?" He knew JD had wanted to get back at him for outdrawing on the last of the seven men, in front of the man he looked up to. Jesse hadn't wanted a rematch or to prove himself but JD's cockiness had proven to be more stubbourn than the man, himself.

JD huffed and stood up, walking outside as Ezra walked in. "Some gunfighter, he is. Can't even prove it from behind them bars." JD mumbled from under his breath and walked to the edge of the walkway and slouched against the post.

"I'm assuming you would be whom the young man is so querulous about?" Ezra looked from JD's back to the man in the cell, still sitting on the bed, indifferent to the situation.

Jesse looked at the gambler in confusion. "Huh?" The change in people had been welcome but he hadn't quite figured out why Ezra had been among the men who captured him. He surmised that Ezra came along for the ride out of lack of excitement from the cards but, he had also been quick on the draw. He had to be, due to the cards he played with. Jesse liked that about the southerner. 

"Nevermind." Rolling his eyes, Ezra took the chair at the desk across from where JD had been sitting. He began shuffling a pack of cards that he had just bought and decided to break them in. After ten minutes, he heard movement. The soft, slow and calibrated steps of the young man pacing his cell, anxious of the next day's dealings. "You know, my young Mister McCall, it is an art form how a man 'handles' a deck of cards. The way he," Ezra looked over to find Jesse slowly pacing the length of his cell, "intimately caresses each smooth paper card. It's almost as if one 'makes love' to such slim and tantilising colours." His hints had only forced a few subtle glances and small sighs of boredom from the captive.

Jesse continued to pace his cell. "Like I told him, I ain't interested in playin' cards."

"Then, perhaps, another form of entertainment might be in order?" Ezra turned his head to see Vin walk through the open doorway, escorting a young woman in a tan duster that seemed too oversized for her small frame. He smiled at the young woman and nodded to Vin.

Pausing in midpace, Jesse took a double look at the young woman in the duster. His mouth opened as he realised that Vin had escorted Lyla to the jail, in the dress he had bought for her. He had been awestruck and amased and dumbfounded at the same time. Jesse panted as Vin reached for the keys that hung on the nail in the post, just outside the outer cell door. "Lyla?"

A smile adorned Lyla's lips. She blushed from excitement of hearing her husband's voice. "Jesse?" 

"Back up, Jesse." Vin spoke quietly as he raised the key to the lock.

Jesse backed up but only a few steps, eager to receive his bride. "Is this a joke?" He looked at Vin, in question, as he opened the door and took Lyla by the arm and led her inside. He waited for her to get completely inside the cell before reaching out to her and pulling her to him, kissing her lips with passion. He had three inches on her but had rarely paid attention to height.

Vin nodded and stood at the door to the cell. "Thirty minutes, Jesse. That's all we can give you."

"Jesse? What's going on?" Lyla raised her head as if to look at him. 

Looking into distant, amber eyes, Jesse glanced over at Vin, who remained standing at the cell door. "Lyla, they know about us, darlin. And um," he looked back own at her, bringing her hand up to kiss it, "Lyla, you know I love, you. With all my heart. Do uh, do you wanna be with me, in here? I know this ain't what I was wantin' this to be like and I'm sorry but,--" He was silenced by her kiss as her answer.

Lyla smiled as a tear streamed down her cheek. "Yes. Yes, Jesse. I want to be with you. I don't care where it is."

Jesse's breath caught with her answer and as he swallowed, he pulled her to him, looking over her shoulder at Vin, mouthing the words "thank you" as the tracker closed the door and locked it before ushering Ezra and JD out of the room. They had been kind enough to close the blinds before leaving them in private. Jesse pulled back and helped her out of the duster she had borrowed from Buck. At second glance, he saw that she wore the dress he had bought for her. "You look so pretty, darlin. I saw it and I just knew it'd fit you perfect."

"Do you like it? Mrs. Travis helped me get dressed and curled my hair and Mister Larabee and Mister Wilmington helped me with the coat." She smiled brightly. She could feel the lace and light satin touches of the white, subtle bridal gown. With a low-cut neckline with lace bodice and sleeves and skirt that had been altered slightly to fit, her hand went to her satin collar and then, nervously, to her fresh curls. She wished she could see herself but had a clear picture of what Jesse saw, in her mind.

Nodding and staring uncontrollably, Jesse smiled. "You look beautiful, Lyla." Taking a breath and glancing at the closed office door, he looked back at her. "Darlin, we ain't got much time." Walking her over to the cot and helping her to sit down, he sat down beside her and kissed her cheek. He hadn't wanted to rush things but had no choice. A hand went to her soft brown hair, taking in the feel of it. "I love you, Lyla. I wanted to grow old, with you, and have babies and a ranch and whatever your little heart desires." Carefully, he helped her to lie down with her head on the pillow. 

Reaching her hands up to his face, Lyla pulled him into another kiss as she felt his hands gently raise her skirt. Nervously, her fingers trailed down his chest and paused as she came to his trouser buttons. Unfastening the buttons with shaky hands, they kissed again as her hand was covered with his, helping her place him at her entrance. Lyla gasped softly as the head of his firm manhood eased into her tight opening. She had been a little scared that the door would open and someone would drag them apart, again, but Jesse calmed her with a soft kiss and slow push in.

Jesse could feel her fingers grip his hips, nestling themselves under his clothes and digging into his soft skin, gasping as he felt her squeeze him, indicating she wanted him deeper. He kissed her collarbone and shifted for better momentum. He panted and raised a hand to her lace-covered breast. Burying himself into her and starting a slow rhythm, his lips brushed her ear and he whispered, "I love you, Lyla." He smiled again as she reciprocated her love to him. His pace picked up and after a few minutes more, he could feel himself getting tired. "I can't hold out, much longer, Lyla. Please, darlin." Leaning down, his lips brushed over her left breast as his hand pushed the material upwards, exposing her firm midriff. He continued his movements and moaned, gritting his teeth in attempt to hold out a little longer.

Lyla moved her hands to his shoulders and shifted her legs, feeling him deep within her, she bit her lower lip and gasped as she felt him come, briefly. "I want you, Jesse." Gasping loudly as his pace quickened again, she held tightly to him and closed her eyes as his breath caught one last time before coming inside her. She heard his ragged panting close to her ear and jumped when she heard the tap on the glass window. For a brief time, she had forgotten where they were and hadn't wanted to give up the feeling of it being just the two of them.

When Jesse fnished, he removed himself and righted their clothing before laying down with her for a moment, to relax. Placing a hand on her stomach, he kissed her cheek and then her lips as he whispered, "you'll make a fine momma, darlin." Kissing her again, he felt her fingers curl themselves into his golden blond hair. Sweat dampened the locks at his temples, a drop tracing a line at his jawbone before dripping onto her shoulder. He turned and looked over his shoulder as the door opened and Vin stepped in, head bowed as not to see any misplacement.

"Sorry, Jess. Time's up."

Sighing, Jesse turned back to Lyla, who had closed her eyes and nuzzled his chest. "Darlin, it's time to go back to your room, now." Easing out of her arms as she disagreed and held tighter to him, Jesse's heart sank. "Lyla. I know you don't wanna go, darlin, but.... you need to go and get some rest, for our baby. He's gonna need a strong momma to care for him." He swallowed as Vin turned the key in the cell door. It took all of his remaining strength to stand and help Lyla to her feet, feeling her crush against him, one last time and reach for the duster to drape over her shoulders. "I'll be alright, darlin. Don't you worry about me. I love you." Holding her close and smelling her sweet, clean hair, he kissed her and then turned away as Vin and Ezra quickly escorted her out of the jail and down the street, to the hotel.

~~~~~

_Jesse stood there, in front of the judge, steeling himself against the cold tone of the makeshift courtroom. He swallowed but his mouth had gone dry. So dry, he felt like he had swallowed a mouthful of sawdust. To his left, stood the newly-appointed sheriff. To his right, stood the twelve-man jury of his peers. Each time he looked over, he saw townspeople that yelled and clawed and lunged at him. Yet, he stood there, in chains that grew heavier and choked the life out of him with each passing moment._

_The judge in the trial had come from the neighbouring town of Slide Rock. He had taken special interest in the case due to being a very good friend of Sloan McCall's. But, that hadn't made the decision over the younger McCall any easier. The man's voice had been deeper and less distinguishable that Jesse remembered. "You were just a boy, when we met. Now, that you're a grown man, it saddens me to see you standing before me as a prisoner and murderer of a man- who was not only the sheriff of this small but friendly town- but who was also your father. One argument should never warrant such hostilities against your own kin, Jesse."_

_Jesse shook his head and tried to speak but no words came from his mouth. Looking from the jury to the judge to the sheriff, Jesse saw only monsters. Each time he glanced over, Sheriff Drake had changed, ever so slightly. He couldn't tell if it had been his mind or if the new sheriff really had been as evil as he remembered. His breath caught in his throat, refusing air. Jesse felt as if he were drowning with no water around him. Again, he looked at the judge and tried desperately to tell his side of the story but nothing came out. His feet felt like mud and his movements like thick molasses._

_"Don't you dare talk back to me, boy!" Sloan had grabbed his arm and yanked him around from turning and walking away. His swift hand had come crashing down on Jesse's left cheek, leaving a red mark on his already bruised jaw._

_Jesse had hit the floor with a heavy thud. He had been dazed and his head spun from the hit. Looking up at the silhouetted man that was his father, a voice came to his ears, laughing._

_"Should always listen to your Pa, boy." Long, deep, drawn out laughter erupted from everywhere around Jesse. Deputy Drake stood in the doorway of the McCall ranch, his Winchester draped over his right arm. They both had been drinking but Charlie Drake had done the pouring and taunting of Sloan. With each passing hour, he had given Sloan more ammunition against his absent wife and a hard-headed son. He had earned a fast friendship with the sheriff in the few months of his deputyhood._

_Jesse pushed himself up, off of the floor and backed away from his drunken father. "I wasn't talkin' back, Papa. I don't think you need that whiskey." He had gone from a man of 18 to a child of 13 in a matter of seconds. A shiver raced down his spine, causing his right arm to twitch uncontrollably. Terror enveloped him and he felt he would wet himself, again. For his third night, he had done the smallest thing wrong or had said something about the war that had touched a nerve in his father._

_"I think the boy needs to learn some manners, still." Drake laughed and took another sloppy drink from the bottle of mostly-gone whiskey._

_Jesse's arm hurt under his father's crushing grip. His eyes widened as he saw Sloan reach for the rein, he had just purchased to replace the old, worn out one that had broken earlier in the month. "No, please!" As he had been shoved against his bedroom wall, Jesse found himself standing, once again, before the judge that held his fate._

_The judge's voice had been much more deeper and sinister than before as the gavel banged compliance on the table. "Jesse Duell McCall, this court finds you guilty of murder in the first degree and hereby sentences you to death. Your sentence will be carried out, the day after tomorrow. Come dawn, on that day, you will be taken, from the jail, to the tallest tree and there, you'll be hung from the neck until you are dead..... dead.... DEAD!" The courtroom erupted with laughter and screams of joy as the judge, himself, bared close resemblance to the Devil._

Heart pounding in his chest, Jesse woke up with a start. Sweat soaked his clothing. His breathing had become ragged and painful as he sat up to gather himself. His chest and back ached as he looked around him to find himself in his cell but, not the cell he had thought he was in. The settings had changed and so had the men's faces who were guarding him. His eyes met with Buck's, as the man sat across the room, watching Jesse in his animated sleep. He had struggled to get away from someone only he could see and hear and that had intrigued the older man. Jesse felt ill. 

"You alright, son? You look like you've seen a ghost." Buck asked, concerned for the young man.

Still panting, Jesse nodded and laid back down, rolling over, away from Buck. His eyes closed but he refused to let sleep claim him. He heard the door open and Chris's footsteps on the floorboards. Chris and Buck chatted about Jesse and the evening and the coming morning, with the judge's arrival. Silently, Jesse prayed the day went by quickly.

 

Continued.


	7. Chapter 7

The next morning, Chris poured a cup of coffee and walked over to the bars, between the two cells and crouched down. "Mornin', Jess. Have a good night?" Holding the cup of coffee through the bars, he waited for the prisoner to wake up and acknowledge the cup. He had half-expected to see a smile plastered on the young prisoner's face but the expression that was on Jesse's face was on that puzzled him. The only smile Jesse wore was a sad one and even then, it didn't last long. He paused. It had been so uncharacteristic of him to be so affectionate to a prisoner, especially one who killed his own kin, but in meeting Lyla, Jesse had earned the kindness by not taking advantage of the younger, more fragile blind woman, when he really could have. Any other young buck would have.

Chris had often wondered what the face of his young son would have expressed, when he was in love. He wondered if Adam would have worn the same exasperated, lovesick expression Buck constantly wore, or if JD's simple and shy smile would adorn Adam's face. Or, would it be the sweet and sad heartbreak that Jesse relayed without saying a word?

Laying on his back with his right arm over his eyes, Jesse stirred from his sleep. Inhaling the scent of fresh, hot coffee, he opened his eyes and sat up. He took a moment for the lethargy to fade before moving around and getting his berrings of where he was. "Spose it was your idea for me an' Lyla--?" Reaching over to accept the cup, he glanced over at the man in black, squinting as the sun was in his eyes.

Chris gave a small smile, remembering how it felt to be young and freshly married to his lovely bride. "More or less."

"Thank you."

Chris shrugged. "Vin's the one for the thankin'."

Nodding, Jesse blew on and then sipped his coffee. "You'll probably have to thank him for me, later." It had been a long while since he had a fresh cup of coffee. His eyes closed as he inhaled the aroma, hoping it would wash away the memory of the dream he'd had the night before. When he opened them again, he was more aware of his surroundings and company. He had only wished that Lyla was by his side, instead of a cold brick wall to one side and bars of the jail, on the other.

"Probably. The judge should be here in a few hours. If you're hungry, we can see about gettin' you some breakfast?" Chris stood from his crouched position and walked out of the cell beside Jesse's. 

"Ain't hungry. How's Lyla?" Jesse stood up and walked over to the door to his cell. He leaned against the bars, draping his arms over the crossbar.

Chris weighed his answer to Jesse. The younger man was obviously more worried about his blind wife than he was for his own safety. "She's fine. The sheriff was havin' breakfast with her, earlier."

"Mister Larabee," waiting for Chris to turn around and look at him, Jesse took a deep breath, "the sheriff may be a good man but, Charlie'll go crazy iffin' he hears about me and her, last night. You ain't gonna tell him, are ya?" He had wanted to be able to trust the man in black.

Chris poured himself a cup of coffee and then turned back to the prisoner. "Ain't no reason to tell him. Is there? Two adults want to get married and start a new life, there's not much Charlie Drake can do about it."

Jesse's tone went flat. "If it don't come out durin' the trial, it might just come out some time after I'm gone. I don't mind Charlie bein' mad at me but, Lyla don't need to hear him all hot-headed and flustered, at her. Maybe after my hangin', it won't matter but, she-- she just don't need it, is all." After being faced with death, the first time, he was forced to take into account not only his own actions but the actions of those around him. Now, he had focused his attention on solely protecting Lyla, as best he could, under the circumstances.

Asking point blank, Chris had an itch that needed answering before the trial. He had wanted to possibly speak up for the young man, after witnessing and listening to the horror stories Jesse had shown and Lyla had spoken of. After having his own demons to face, Chris saw himself, all too often, in the young McCall. The only difference was that he had gotten several more chances to change himself but, Jesse wouldn't be so lucky. That is, if no one had taken the time to get to the bottom of the puzzle Jesse had set up as a defense in a cold world. "What in that town are you scared of, Jesse? You've been beatin' around the bush all this time. Sloan McCall is dead, Jesse, and--" Chris had raised his cup to his lips but spoke before he could drink.

Taking a deep breath, Jesse finished the statement, "and if I go back there, I'll be hung for sure. There ain't no love in that town for me. There never was. Judge Travis can't undo what's been done. Carson ain't gonna let that happen." Jesse raised the cup of coffee, in his hand, to his lips and took a sip.

"Then, I'd say Lyla married a real winner. You've already given up, hung and put yerself in the ground." Chris sipped his coffee and came to stand between the two desks but leaned on the edge of the closest one. He paused when JD opened the door and walked in. "As a matter of fact, I think Lyla's better off without you." Chris ducked but didn't move from the corner he sat on as Jesse had thrown the cup of half full coffee at him, in retort. The cup had hit the wall, somewhere behind him but he hadn't bothered to watch where it landed, or pick it up.

JD started forward to Jesse's cell, a hand on the gun at his right hip. "Hey, that's the last thing you'll upset, boy." He had wanted to move forward even further but Chris's hand on his left arm stopped him. Glancing back at Chris, JD glared over at Jesse and was not surprised to find the young man behind the bars doing the same to him. The staring contest continued until Chris mentioned JD's name and asked why he had come in. "Oh, uh, Mrs. Travis said that the judge should be here before noon and that she got another wire from the judge in Echo. It seems he won't let Judge Travis take over the case unless there's proof his findings aren't sound. And even then, he says he wants to see the proof for himself." Breaking the icy glare to the prisoner, JD turned to look back at Chris before speaking. 

"He's an old man that gets a little scattered in the head, more times than not. He oughtta been retired, long ago. Even before my trial. He's about as hard-headed as they come and don't care about justice, just about the wrong person doing wrong to a 'right' person. More importantly, a child shouldn't kill his father, no matter what the story." Jesse spoke up, still standing at the bars. Letting his arms balance him, he leaned against the bars, his head tilted to one side, his face expressionless.

JD turned back to Jesse and sneered. "At least he had the sense enough to give you your dues, first."

"JD." Chris waited until the younger man looked back at him before shaking his head. "Is that why he didn't ask you your side, Jesse?" Chris's question was genuine yet, he wanted to see if Jesse had been prejudice to the elder judge.

Jesse pushed off of the bars and went back to sit on his cot. "He and Papa were good friends. He was old when I met him, after Beth died. Papa said he was too old for the war but, um, he was old enough to remember that mess in '36. First time we shook hands, he told me I was nothin' but trouble and someday, he'd see me stand before him, if I didn't start earnin' my keep." Jesse bowed his head. His mother had taught him to be respectful of his elders and his father, before deciding the drink was a better teacher, had taught him the difference of right and wrong. Jesse had tried to live up to what his mother and father had taught him but found it was harder to do as his father's temper from the drink, set in.

Chris stared at Jesse, in his cell. Every so often, his head would tilt and he would shift, searching the young man for worth. "Would you be willin' to provide proof and tell the court just how your pa treated you, if Judge Carson came to the trial?" He was taking a big leap of faith that Jesse would say yes with no questions asked, or shyness to show the proof on his back.

"Two judges to tell him he's guilty of murder?" JD's jaw dropped at Chris's suggestion.

Jesse scoffed at JD's response. "Hope you ain't on the jury. You already have me pegged as guilty." Narrowing his eyes at the dark-haired and eager upstart of the seven, Jesse was beginning to enjoy the playful rivalry, even if JD didn't think it was too playful, or friendly. He smiled as JD's mixed emotions and flurry of expressions as he thought of something to say in return.

JD smirked. "Maybe if yer pa hadda taught you some manners, we wouldn't be havin' this discussion." He seemed pleased with himself as Jesse's smile faded and averted his eyes from the two men.

Chris gave a scolding look to JD but said nothing. Finishing his coffee, he stood up and walked to the door, opening it to go back to the Telegraph station and wire Judge Carson to come. As he took his first step out of the jail, Jesse called to him, causing him to stop and turn around. 

"Mister Larabee! Could I send a wire out to my Ma? Or, a letter, maybe?" Jesse stood up and rushed back to the bars, anxious to catch Chris before he was left alone with JD. A nervous hand raked through shaggy blond hair. A million thoughts came to his head of what he should say to the new judge, as well as the old one, yet he could only think of wiring his mother to tell her that she would lose both of her children.

Chris said nothing but nodded his answer and attempted to leave the jail, once again.

~~~~~

With help from Charlie, Lyla walked from the hotel room she was in, to the church, where Josiah had been replacing a loose board on floor. "I will be fine, Charlie. I wish to be alone, for awhile." Ezra had been kind enough to help Mary pick out a few new dresses for her, from the General Store. Eventhough, she couldn't see colours or what they looked like, she felt the material and pictured it in her mind. Trying her hardest to remember the named colours she had been told of, Lyla wondered if she really looked silly or mismatched in their choices. But, two separate compliments of "You look lovely, miss," reassured her. Her brown hair had once again been pulled back but Mary had been kind enough to braid it for her and clasp it together with a flowery clip she had given to Lyla.

Lyla was helped to a pew and sat down, facing the pulpit. She waited for Charlie's retreating footsteps and the door closing before taking a deep breath and clasping her hands together in silent prayer. She could hear Josiah working the new board into place, not too far from where she sat. "Mister... Sanchez? Do you think, if I prayed, it would help Jesse's chances?"

Stopping in his movements with the flooring, Josiah reclined on his haunches and glanced up at her, sitting there. Her profile had been outlined by the morning sunlight coming in through the stained glass. "Well, I think a time comes in every man's life when a little prayer is good for the soul."

"Even a condemned one?"

"Well," Josiah laid down the hammer he had picked up and moved to sit in the pew, in front of her, "the sins against this young man's life shouldn't have defined his spirit. Yet, I believe he has a good heart and spirit, to care for a lovely young woman, such as yourself." The words alone had touched his company and he watched as she smiled and wiped a tear from her eye.

Lyla bowed her head and wiped more tears away as they fell. "Jesse mentioned the judge is the same one who married us. We just want to be left alone. He is a good man, Mister Sanchez. His father was mean and berated Jesse, every chance he had. But, Jesse never once spoke unkindly to me or anyone else. Mister Larabee and you all have been very nice to me but, I wonder. What do you think of Jesse? Does he stand a chance with this judge?"

Josiah leaned against the back of the pew he sat on and sighed in thought. "I reckon if Jesse's truthful and sincere, well, I reckon he might have a positive outcome."

Lyla was quiet for a long time. In her thoughts, she prayed for Jesse's trial to be smooth and have a good outcome. She had tried not to doubt herself but eventually lost her confidence to the sound of people outside, laughing and carrying on about a completely different subject. "What if it's not positive?" For a second, her expression changed to panic. "I don't want to live without my husband, Mister Sanchez." Her heart fluttered as she could hear Charlie's footsteps on the stairs, outside.

Josiah smiled. "Mrs. McCall, don't you worry. With an Angel, like you on his side, that young man'll have a whole line of prayers on standin' up there with him." He looked up from watching her hands fidget, in her lap, and saw Sheriff Drake walk through the double doors and announce that the stage carrying the judge had arrived. Nodding, Josiah took his leave of the pew he sat in and stepped outside, to give brother and sister some privacy.

Lyla's breath caught but she didn't move from her seat. "Would you come for me when the trial begins, Charlie? I want to sit here awhile." Bowing her head, once again, and wiping tears away as they rolled down her ashen cheeks, Lyla listened to her brother's sputters. She held her breath and closed her eyes as he came forward and knelt down beside her to speak to her. She cleared her throat and forced herself to breathe with controlled calmness.

"A trial ain't no place for a lady to be, if she doesn't need to be there. A bastard like Jesse's just gonna hurt anyone and everyone he can, 'fore the judge hands down his sentence." Sincerity in his voice as Charlie stared up at his little sister's tear-stained face. He wondered why she had been crying and what she and Josiah had been talking about. Charlie, for the most part, had been kept out of certain conversations out of fear of recourse to Jesse. He had taken his job seriously and had wanted nothing but the best for his sister, even though she revolted against him and fell in with Jesse.

"I wish to be there and support my-- friend. Regardless of what he's done in Echo, Charlie, Jesse deserves a fair trial. Besides, I was there when he saved me from those men. I think I deserve to have my side of the story told, as well." Lyla sat straight and smiled a little, hopeful of the pending trial, with the inspiration Josiah had given her.

Charlie's brow furrowed. "Your side? Lyla, I'm only thinkin' of your well-bein'. You don't need that jury laughin' at you."

"Why would they laugh at me, Charlie? Are you ashamed of me?" She wanted to look at him but only turned her head in his direction. Held back by her affliction, she would have given anything to see his expression and what he wasn't telling her about the trial, or Jesse, for that matter.

Charlie was silent and only stared at his sister with curiosity. He hadn't wanted Lyla to be there, at the trial, as to spare her the added stress she hadn't needed. She was a naive young woman but could also be strong, within her own parameters but this was a stress she hadn't needed. "Lyla, listen to me. Alot's happened since he took you from home. He's probably done who knows what to ya. He's been turnin' you against family, ever since he laid eyes on ya. He's been puttin' too much pressure on you and right now, you don't need it. I'm lettin' you tell your side but then I'm sendin' you out on the stage." He reached a hand up to cup her cheek but pulled back when she flinched away.

"No. I will stay, here, Charlie. You've been telling me, he's nothing but a cold-blooded killer. He isn't, Charlie. You don't know him, like I do." Lyla's anger was beginning to mount.

Growling under his breath, Charlie stood up and stared down at his sister, who hadn't moved from her seat. "You're goin' home, after you say your piece. That's final. You will listen to me, Lyla. I'm your brother, not Jesse. I know what's best for you. Not Jesse!"

"He's my husband, Charlie!" It had taken a full minute of utter silence, in the church, before either of them realised what she had said. By then, she had called after him, turning to find his footsteps as he stormed out of the church and ran into Josiah, on the steps. "Charlie?!" With her hands out in front of her, Lyla slowly made her way over to where she thought the door had been but tripped and was sent sprawling to the floor, over a misplaced chair Josiah had moved out of the way but somehow found it's way into her path.

~~~~~

Judge Oren Travis stepped into the jail office and sighed, exhaustedly. "Well, JD, has everything been prepared?" Brushing the dust off of his coatsleeves, he glanced over to the cell where his main trial prisoner sat.

JD stood up from sitting in his chair and reading the morning edition and nervously nodded. "Oh, yes sir. The prisoner's been waitin' for you." Waving a nonchalant hand over to Jesse, he kept his eyes on the elder Travis and declined the glare he got from Jesse, upon receipt of his comment.

"Mister McCall, I take no pleasure in meeting you again, in settings like this. Had I have known about your previous background, I might have declined your marriage request to the young lady. Let's have no more surprises, shall we?" With his docket still in his hands, Judge Travis turned back to JD and finished his briefing. "JD, I'll be visiting with Chris and Mary and getting brought up to speed on the other matters. After that, I will be resting at the hotel. If I'm needed then, please send for me." He nodded to the young lawman and stepped over to the door, exiting the building and walking down the boardwalk to Mary's office.

Jesse felt his hope drop. 

Standing with his hands on his hips, JD took a moment to look over at Jesse, who had turned away from him. Deciding on not to add to the insult, he sat back down and went back to his paper. He looked up again to see the door open, again, but this time the anxious and hot-tempered sheriff entered. 

"I wanna see my prisoner!" Charlie announced. His eyes never broke from the frightless expression on Jesse's face. When JD stood up to advise against the statement, he was hushed as Charlie aimed his revolver at the young lawman.

Jesse's mouth opened and his eyes widened but quickly replaced his composure as he watched the scene play out. Swallowing the lump in his throat and holding back his panic, his eyes followed as Charlie grabbed the keys to the cell, from the hook, and came closer to unlock the door and step inside. Steeling himself and standing up, his expression went calm, as it had before. Jesse nonchalantly and absently put himself between Charlie and JD, just in case the sheriff became violent. "You don't wanna do this, Sheriff. I'm already gonna stand trial, you don't need ta be next." He had taken a step backwards, looked back to JD long enough to slightly shake his head in warning and nonchalantly, waved a hand for JD to go get help. Holding his hands up, in front of him, Jesse looked about the small cell, for possible ways of protection without getting himself or the sheriff hurt. 

Snarling loudly, Charlie stepped forward and shoved his prisoner into the cell bars, behind him. "You forced my sister inta marryin' you? Did you touch her, too? Huh?" Slamming the young man into the wall again, Charlie heard JD step up and draw his gun. Aiming his revolver back at the dark haired lawman, he hissed a warning, "you don't want none of this, boy. Stay out of it. This is between me and my prisoner." He watched and waited for JD to back off before turning his attention back to the outlaw, now sitting dazed on the floor of the cell.

Jesse regained enough of his wits to wait for Charlie to be directly over him before shoving himself to his feet and pushing the sheriff back, onto the cot. Getting out several right hooks to the jaw before the sheriff crossed, aiming his own fist at the younger man's jaw and taking a swing, knocking Jesse off of him and back down to the floor.

"Did you touch my sister, you little shit? I see you still ain't learned yer manners, boy! Well, I'll be happy to teach 'em to ya!" Grabbing Jesse by the arm and raising his own, with the gun in hand, Charlie brought the grip of the revolver down, slapping Jesse across the face with it. By the third time he raised his hand to bring the handle down again, he had been grabbed at the wrist by Buck and separated from Jesse by Vin, fashioning his own sawed-off Winchester on the enraged sheriff.

Buck had whirled Charlie around and shoved him out of Jesse's cell and into the one next to it, locking the door behind him. "Cool off, now." Turning back to find Jesse, still sitting on the floor, with Vin and, now, Nathan looming over him, he walked back into the cell and knelt down, in between the two men. "You alright, son?" It had taken both he and Vin to remove Charlie from the younger man and once they had, Buck had finally saw what Chris and Vin had been suspicious of, from the start.

Jesse flinched up at Buck and turned away, mumbling a "fine, papa" under his breath. Reminding himself of what he had said and who he had said it to, Jesse nodded as Buck glanced over at him with a confused look on his face.

Within minutes, they were joined by Chris, Mary and Judge Travis. JD had apprised them of the situation and had even come to Jesse's defense, stating the prisoner hadn't antagonised anything but instead kept the focus of the sheriff's rage, on him.

"You alright, Jesse?" Chris called from across the room. His focus remained on the jailed sheriff, pacing angrily in the cell Buck placed him in to cool off. Glancing over at the young man, he caught glimpses of what had been done. 

"Fine. Don't worry. I'll live to be hung." Jesse's off-handed comment had caught Buck's attention, causing the gunfighter to furrow his brow at the young man, on the floor.

Chris walked over to the cell door that kept the sheriff at bay and glared at him. "What was that for?"

Charlie snarled and glared right back at Chris. "The little bastard needed to be taught some more manners. His pa never taught him to keep his hands to himself. So, I taught him, proper-like." An evil smile adorned the sheriff's face, as he leaned against the far wall.

Judge Travis stepped forward and assessed the setting. "Your trial isn't set until tomorrow, young man. Would you like to press charges against Sheriff Drake?" The judge's eyes steeled against the Sheriff, fuming in the other cell. It was too early in the day to settle petty arguments, especially from a lawman who was to know better than the prisoner. Yet, he waited for Jesse to give his answer before carrying on with his schedule of events.

Jesse looked from the judge to Charlie. A shiver raced through him as he recalled the last time he dared to speak against the other man. "No sir." Turning his head away, Jesse inhaled and exhaled calmly. His pride had been hurt and he had been a little afraid to have as many people as such looming over him, namely, Buck. He stared at the edge of his own cot and tried to focus but the pounding in his head, from getting hit twice, made his vision swim and his stomach turn.

Mary had run to Nathan's office to bring a cloth and antiseptic to clean the wound on Jesse's temple, which had started to bleed and run down his left temple and jawline. When she returned, she poured some water into the basin and carried them both over to Nathan, getting a full view of the punishment Charlie had given Jesse moments before. "Will he be alright, Nathan?" She asked quietly. Her eyes soaked in all of the redness and bruising Nathan had paid close attention to. She felt sorry for him but wondered what Jesse had done to anger the Sheriff to incur that much rage.

Nathan paused at what he was doing and rinsed off his cloth that he used. "Yea, he'll be alright. Just knocked silly, though." Nathan checked the dilation of Jesse's eyes and gave him a few simple tests before determining his conclusion. "I don't recommend movin' too fast, for awhile."

Jesse nodded.

"I tried to stop him, Chris, but he aimed that revolver at me and was on Jesse before I could stop him. When Jesse backed away from him, I thought I had time but, I ran out to find Buck and Vin." JD offered his piece of what happened, before Chris could ask. 

Vin, who had remained silent in the setting, after taking away the sheriff's gun as Buck physically escorted him out of one cell and into the other, shifted. "Seems to me, a couple more hits of the sheriff's gun and Jesse would've had his lights out, permanently."

"The brat shoulda had his lights out, years ago." Charlie laughed.

Choking on the statement the others heard, Jesse offered no response. He felt ashamed that his actions had gathered so much attention. Worse yet, his actions and very breath hindered the well-being of his lovely and innocent bride. Something he had never wanted to happen.

Oren Travis listened to Charlie's statement but watched Jesse's reaction and lack of response. Remaining unbiased, he took a deep breath and removed himself from the situation. "Mister McCall's trial will be tomorrow morning, when I have had contact with Judge Carson. Until then, Sheriff Drake, you are not to be with or around Mister McCall, or Lyla McCall, without proper escort from Chris Larabee or Buck Wilmington. Is that clear?" He hadn't expected an answer from the still fuming sheriff but accepted the brief nod, in it's place, before leaving. "Should another harmful incident arise, before such time of the trial, I'll be resting in my room, at the hotel." Turning but stopping as he caught sight of JD, standing next to Vin, he added, "JD, you did the right thing, in seeking assistance. Both of you could have been seriously injured, if Mister Wilmington and Mister Tanner hadn't have stepped in." 

JD nodded to the judge but glanced back at Jesse as the young man had looked up to stare at him while Nathan cleaned his wound.

"I'll take over, JD." Vin shifted again, looking at the bloodied handle of the sheriff's gun, in his right hand. "He gonna be alright, Nathan?" Eyes still focused on the gun in his hand.

Managing to clean the wound, in between Jesse flinching away, Nathan glanced back at Vin and nodded. "Yea, he'll be alright. A little wobbly for awhile, but fine." Nathan looked back at Jesse and leaned in close to whisper, "you in your head, boy?" When Jesse nodded, nonchalantly, he sat back and watched Jesse's eyes for any signs of impairment from the beating. Going back to cleaning the wound at Jesse's left temple, stopping himself from constantly apologising everytime the prisoner jumped from pain.

Before the Judge left the room, he turned to look back at the jailed sheriff and then over to Chris. "See that he calms down, before he is released. Exclude the revolver."

Chris nodded in agreement.

 

~~~~~~~~

JD stood at the bar and tossed back his third shot of whisky. Slamming the small glass down on the bar, he poured himself another and talked himself down from replaying over and over the scene that hadn't gotten any worse than it already had. He had been scared and terrified but hadn't fully understood what could have happened, if Jesse hadn't have shooed him away. With another slam of his whisky, JD took a deep breath and moved away from the bar. Walking outside, he headed back to his room, at the hotel but paused as he heard a familiar voice running to catch up to him.

"Hey, JD! Where ya been? Thought you were at the jail but, Mister Tanner said he took over for ya." Casey Wells bounded up beside him, a big smile plastered on her face. Her smile faded as she saw the frozen determination in his expression. "JD? Are you alright? JD?" Her hair had been pulled back into low pigtails and her clothes had been her favourite pair of overalls and loose, yellow with black flowers shirt.

JD stopped and grabbed her arm, retracting immediately when he realised what he had done. "Casey, just go home, now. Leave me alone." Continuing on his way over to the hotel, he grumbled, under his breath, as she continued to follow him.

Casey had followed him into the lobby of the hotel, where JD stopped, turned around and held up his hand in notification not to follow anymore. "Worried about ya, JD. What's going on?" Her expression was more hurt than worry but, she had come to fall in love with the young upstart of the seven men. 

"It's just... nevermind! Go home!" JD turned again and quickly ran up the stairs with Casey following closely behind him. He grew annoyed as he heard and felt her presence behind him, even as he made it to his room door. Unlocking and opening the door, he turned once again but this time, wasn't allowed to turn her away. 

Getting up the courage, Casey shoved JD inside his room and kicked the door closed behind them. "What the heck is goin on, JD?" She had been a tomboy since before she arrived in town. Yet, something in her sparked when she saw the handsome JD Dunne. "Ever since you got back from Willow Ridge, you've been just so distant! Clearly, somethin' is wrong, JD. What is it?" Pushing him to sit down on the bed, she stood in front of him and crossed her arms.

"Casey, I really ain't in the mood, right now." JD huffed, annoyedly but didn't make eye contact. They had a little over a week before they exchanged vows but both were feeling the strain of the wait.

"When JD?" Casey's tone matched his annoyance and she shifted from foot to foot. "Who was that girl you were with last night?" Jealousy had struck a chord and burned her deeply when she noticed JD on one side of Lyla and Vin on the other.

Standing up and forcing Casey to step back, JD removed his jacket, in attempt to change the subject or at least the climate in the room. "It wasn't like that. She belongs to--"

Casey pouted and folded her arms in front of her. "Who? Huh? Your tracker friend?" She had admitted to herself that Vin was very attractive and was positive he had women in several towns he's been to. She had never known to have seen what sort of woman Vin desired, though. "Or, maybe Mister Wilmington?"

JD was becoming more and more anxious to be left alone. It took a full minute for his ears to register what she was talking about. He sighed, annoyed at who she named off. "No! Look, she's married! Alright!? She's married to the prisoner we brought back. We were givin' them--" he lowered his voice so that only Casey could hear the rest of the statement, "some courtin' time."

"Courtin' time? You mean like makin'--" Casey was hushed by his hand over her mouth.

JD nodded. "Yea, like makin' love. Chris and Vin caught them while they were doin'-- Why am I tellin' you?! Go home, Casey!" He removed his hand and turned away from her. When he turned back, he hadn't been surprised that she had stayed where she was and was still staring at him.

Casey smiled. "I heard he was pretty damn fast. And handsome. Can I see him?" She knew she was getting under his skin and was readily waiting for his outburst. She loved it when he got angry. The way his mouth would press in a tight line, as if holding back a string of curse words. The way his brown eyes would narrow at mention of certain names and things. His mannerisms and emotions set her blood on fire.

"What? No! And, he ain't that fast!"

Smiling and then laughing, Casey couldn't help herself. "You're jealous. Ain'tcha?"

JD fumed. "How can I--? I ain't jealous. He's a two-bit outlaw that's gonna hang, tomorrow!" As soon as he said it, JD was overcome with grief as his mind replayed how Jesse stepped between he and the sheriff's gun. JD's pride had taken a direct hit as the younger gunfighter shooed him away like a child from a saloon show. However, he had been thankful that he was shooed away instead of getting into something he might not have been able to handle by himself. Jesse might have been able to take the sheriff out and then aim for JD, on his way out of the jail. He had learned his lesson twice before about handling things by himself.

"If he's gonna hang, why'd you let him see his wife?" Casey watched as JD sputtered in his answer. Growing more and more impatient, she shook her head and stepped closer. "JD, shut up." Cupping his face in her hands, she leaned up, into a kiss that had taken a long moment for him to understand and reciprocate back.

His hands moved up her arms and he moaned, slightly, as her tongue pried open his mouth and searched inside for his own tongue. "Casey--"

"Shh. The problem is, you're gettin' too tense over that outlaw that you ain't seein' the bigger picture." Casey smirked and stepped back, undoing the bib portion of her overalls and letting it fall away from the front of her shirt. Her hands moved to her shirt and started to button it. She bit her bottom lip and eyed him coyly. 

JD's eyes had been glued to her hands as she unbuttoned her shirt. At her last button, JD swallowed, dryly. His eyes wandered upward and met with hers. A smile slowly spread on his face and he was pushed backwards to sit down on the bed. As Casey sat down on his lap, they kissed again before his mouth moved down her neck and chest to settle on a pert, pink nipple. Sucking on it and letting it roll around on his tongue, between his teeth, JD's arms wrapped around her waist. Every moan and gasp from her sent him into chasms of pleasure, wanting and needing more. Standing up, still holding her close and kissing her collarbone, JD turned them so that she was now lying on the bed and he loomed over her. 

Casey giggled and fisted her fingers in his hair. She gasped and panted as she felt his hands unbuttoning and slipping off her overalls at the waist. She lie there, vulnerable and smiling. She had been trying her best for more than a year now, to get JD to ask for her hand. A month earlier, her wish came true. Her aunt, Netty, had told her not to rush into anything but the 19-year-old wasn't willing to wait too much longer. Gasping as he made his way down, kissing spots on her neck, collarbone and stomach, his hands sliding her overalls further down until he could shove them off of her ankles.

Sitting back and admiring his bride to be, JD began to unbutton his shirt and peel it off of him before moving to his pants. He had been waiting for their wedding day but with the mounting pressures from Sheriff Drake, JD needed some release. His eyes never left Casey's. As his movements hastened, he began to pant and inadvertently lower himself back down to where she was, on the bed and kiss her. Adjusting his position, he laid himself down, next to her, continuing his kissing along her throat and collarbone, feeling her hands in his hair. 

Casey laughed as he tickled her left breast with his tongue.

Shifting his position, JD rolled himself ontop of her and smiled as she gasped as he entered her and slowly slid all the way in. A slow rhythm started as JD resumed his kissing. Both had started to moan and giggle as the pace increased, but slightly. The next push in and JD closed his eyes to listen to her moan and gasp. He could feel her hands clawing at his back and after a few more thrusts, he could have sworn she drew blood. Cringing in pain from the feel of her sharp nails, he felt himself come just a little. His breath caught. 

Casey gasped loudly. "JD!" Her breathy voice in his ear gave them both a jolt; him hearing her say his name and her being completely turned on by his unabashed lovemaking. She giggled as another low moan escaped her. Her cheeks felt hot as she blushed; his pace quickened and she could tell he wasn't the only one holding back from release. Shifting her left leg and allowing him better access also gave her the courage to kiss his shoulders and neck before connecting their mouths, again, tangling their tongues together. 

JD could feel himself straining, pressure building as two more thrusts completed his movements. His face flushed as he came into her. A small shiver ran through him followed by a gulp of air and a spasm as he felt her come, as well. "Casey," he panted "I love you." A fine layer of sweat covered their bodies, glistening as their eyes met. One last kiss as he lowered himself down to her, separating them and resting next to her, on the bed. 

Casey shifted again, moving so that he could lie flat for her to rest her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat slow from a rapid pace to normal. "Wow." She panted but tried to control her breathing. Closing her eyes, she rest there, hoping he wouldn't make an excuse and spoil the moment by leaving. She felt his arms around her and heard his soft breathing, indicating that he was now sleeping. She snuggled closer to him and wrapped her arms around him, kissing his chest before drifting off to sleep.

 

Continued.


	8. Chapter 8

Lyla lie on her left side and listened to Mary, who sat down on the dark blue settee, a few feet from where Lyla lay on the bed. "Mrs. Travis? Um, Mr. Larabee.... he sounds handsome and is very nice. Is he? Handsome, I mean?" Her left arm cradled her head on her pillow as she pictured what the smooth, masculine voice might look like. She smiled and remembered how his body frame felt. As the days had passed and she came to know Chris and the others more, she could tell Chris Larabee was completely different from who her brother was. 

Smiling, Mary thought back to her first meeting with Chris and Vin. "Chris is very handsome and very nice. Much like how Jesse is with you." She recalled the look he gave her upon learning she had printed private things about him, in the town news. He had controlled himself in her presence but she could tell that his anger nearly boiled over from the misprints. Mary had also recalled catching glances at Chris, on the journey with a bunch of settlers and Gerard. Quite a few casual looks told her that Chris had become jealous of Gerard during the long trek yet hid his true feelings well, from her, as it was not his place to become emotional over someone he had only claimed as a friend. "He's had some hard times but, he takes care of those he loves, I think."

"What kind of faces do they have? Jesse has a soft, thin face with a handsome smile that sounds heavenly. Mister Tanner reminds me of Jesse, alot. They are both shy and reserved. Mister Wilmington...... he is sweet and kind but,--" Lyla paused and thought back to the campfire and then back, inside the schoolhouse, "he makes Jesse uneasy. Have I misjudged him? I would hope they aren't misleading me because I'm blind. I wasn't always so." Her expression changed to that of confusion. She thought she was a good judge of character, based on how people sounded and their mannerisms around her. Yet, her brother was quickly proving her naive in her speculations.

Mary didn't understand. "Makes Jesse uneasy, how, Lyla? Did something happen in Willow Ridge? The journey back, perhaps?" Knowing the past few weeks must have been traumatic for Lyla, Mary tried to place herself in the other woman's shoes. 

Shaking her head, Lyla sat up. "I don't know. While I was waiting for him, in the schoolhouse, he left for awhile. When he came back, he was shaking and was injured. After we settled down, he mentioned he thought he saw his pa. The man he described was tall with black hair and a mustache. I know Mister Wilmington has a mustache. Every time he would take a sip if his coffee, his whiskers would brush against the lip of the cup. During the ride here, Mister Larabee and Mister Wilmington would talk to Jesse and I heard Mister Wilmington call Jesse 'son', several times. Mister Larabee would repeat what he said and Jesse would answer." She recalled how many times Buck referred to Jesse as "son" and could hear Jesse physically shiver from a few paces behind the horse she shared with Charlie, each time he said it.

"Jesse was terrified of his father, wasn't he?" Mary crossed her legs and leaned in. She was enjoying having a one on one talk with Lyla, keeping her calm and hoped she was helping her get some rest. Mary, herself, noticed Jesse eying Buck, as Nathan tended to Jesse's wounds from fighting with Charlie. She had noted the quiet fright in the youth's eyes as Buck moved from the celldoor, where Charlie had been put, to Jesse's bunk, for a closer look at him.

Lyla nodded. "Yes. He'd never say it, though. Mister McCall was always unhappy with him, no matter what he did. I only knew him for a short while and then-- Jesse isn't a cold-blooded killer. If he did kill his pa, I know he was only defending himself."

"Has he told you anything about that day?" Mary didn't want to ask but was curious to know why Jesse pulled the trigger and why Sheriff Drake was hell-bent against him.

Lyla shook her head again. "Only that it was a terrible day and he wishes he could undo it." She bowed her head in silent prayer for what happened. Her head lifted again as she thought of the trial. "Mister Larabee won't let Jesse hang, will he?" Lyla blinked and her brow furrowed as she pleaded with Mary.

Moving from the setee to the floor, kneeling in front of Lyla, Mary gathered Lyla's hands in hers and kept her voice calm. "I'm sure Chris and the others will help him as much as they can, Lyla. Best not to worry yourself, so much. You need your rest."

~~~~~~~

Jesse's head swam and throbbed with the horrid ache of being hit with the butt of the Sheriff's gun. He found himself getting uncomfortable with whichever position he chose. He had switched ends, to avoid dealing with the Sheriff, who remained locked up. He groaned and shifted again before sitting up and looking over to see Buck staring back at him. He felt sick but did his best not to vomit, even though, he probably would have felt better. Swallowing back the waves of nausea, Jesse wanted to ask for Laudnum but was afraid Charlie might use it against him, or that Nathan would give him too much. Sweat and heat surged through him but he shook his head, trying to clear the numbness.

Charlie laughed under his breath. "How's your head, Jess? Still seein' stars?" Charlie walked over and leaned on the bars separating them. He grinned maniacally. He had been watching the other prisoner for some time, sneering and scoffing at the other man's pain. He hadn't cared that he had become a prisoner, as well. "Come on, boy. You can take it." Laughing, Charlie watched Jesse fumble around, trying to keep his lack of composure from being too obvious.

Closing his eyes and sighing, Jesse bowed his head. "Well, Charlie, it feels better knowin' yer still in there. Some place you shoulda been a long time ago." On opening his eyes, he turned his head to look up at the incarcerated sheriff. "You reckon my pa's badge'll rescue you, this time?" Jesse grinned as Charlie shifted with a sneer. For the past two hours, he had remained quiet, patiently waiting for the sheriff to be released, or for his trial to start.

Charlie glared down at Jesse. "Well, now. If you hadn'ta handed it to me, practically, we wouldn'ta had this conversation. All that time sassin' your pa ain't taught you a lick o' sense. So, you just hush yer mouth and take yer medicine, boy." Charlie had forgotten all about Buck, who sat at one of the desks, leaning back in the chair with his feet crossed on the corner of the desk, watching and listening to them. Charlie winked knowingly as he met eyes with Jesse. 

"You can't buy this judge, Charlie. Not like you bought Papa or Carson." Keeping his voice low, Jesse breathed a smile of relief, hoping for his first fair trial. Jesse thought back to the night he overheard his father and Charlie agruing about something, only to have it end with Sloan becoming intoxicated and taking his frustration out on him. He hadn't put it together until he argued with his father before shooting him. Charlie had been trying to buy out the businesses of Echo and had offered Sloan McCall a percentage to look the other way. From what Jesse could tell, Charlie had been trying to win over Sloan since before his sister was killed. Charlie had turned everything around to make it seem as if Jesse had been the one working against the sheriff and had succeeded until Charlie bought Judge Carson's guilty verdict. For three years, Jesse had been sneaking around Echo, trying to prove that his gun, although fired, wasn't his father's murder weapon. So far, he had been unsuccessful.

Buck sat in his chair and listened as best as he could to what they have been talking about. He had been interested in seeing them communicate without being able to physically attack one another. Buck had only met eyes with Jesse a few times but received nothing from Charlie. Contrary to his thinking, it had been Charlie who had tried his hardest to rile Jesse up, yet the young outlaw was not biting. Buck had to give Jesse some credit at being more grown up for not succumbing to the sheriff's prodding. What had amused him more was that Jesse had been wise to the tactics and had even shut Charlie down, as the sheriff taunted with expectations of the upcoming trial as well as being released from the cell without need of a trial, first.

Finally, after an hour more of verbal abuse, Jesse stood up and forced himself to walk straight over to where Charlie still leaned on the bars between them and took a deep breath before saying what he had waited to say for so long, "Charlie, I know what happened that day. And, I ain't gonna take your blame no more." Jesse glared between the bars at the sheriff, feeling confident the Judge Travis didn't know anything about what happened in Echo but was willing to give him an unbiased trial, even if it angered the original judge.

Charlie sneered and reached out to grab the front of Jesse's shirt, pulling him close. "Maybe, maybe not. But, I garrauntee you ain't gonna ever come near my baby sister again." He paused as the barrel of Buck's Henry jabbed him in the shoulder. He had been so close as to snap Jesse's neck and he had wanted to but reasoned that it wouldn't do him much satisfaction due to, he would then be incarcerated for murder.

"Let him go and both of y'all back up." Buck's jaw clenched as neither of them moved. Cocking the Henry, Buck reiterated, "I said, 'let go and back up'. That means now." Glancing over to Jesse as Charlie let go of his shirt, he could see the outlaw's widened eyes fixed on him, waiting for the barrel to trained on him. Buck smiled as Charlie sat down on his cot, a twisted sneer on his lips, leaning forward with his elbows on his thighs. "Good boy. Don't move, now." 

Jesse stood in the middle of his own cell and watched Buck speak to and belittle the Sheriff of Echo, Utah. As Buck turned his attention to him, Jesse swallowed the lump in his throat and backed up a few more steps, waiting for Buck to uncock the Henry and return it to the case it had been resting on when Charlie grabbed his shirt.

As the hour wore on, Buck kept a clear picture of Jesse's expression, in his mind and replayed it, analysing it and tried to make sense of how the younger man had looked at him, throughout their time of knowing each other, like he had seen a ghost. His attention was brought back as Nathan called his name for the second time, stating to let the sheriff out of the cell and then to check on Jesse's injuries. Standing up and stretching before grabbing the ring of keys that hung on the nail, on the support beam, Buck slowly walked up to the celldoor that kept Charlie inside. "Now, you behave, or I'll toss you back in here, myself. Comprende?" Buck unlocked the door and opened it, purposely leaning on the bars between the cells. His steady expression evened on Charlie as the sheriff stood and sauntered out of the cell, pausing to cast a smug smile over his shoulder at the pained outlaw who hadn't bothered looking up from the floor. Buck and Nathan watched the sheriff walk outside before Nathan closed the door and indicating to Buck to open Jesse's celldoor.

"Is he gone?" Jesse managed enough strength to ask, still not looking up from the floor as he heard the door unlock and open. His breathing had become ragged and he had started to sweat.

Nathan followed Buck into the cell, with his medical kit and glanced back at the door. "Yea, he's gone."

Jesse breathed heavily. "Good." Trying to force himself to his feet, the inability to stay conscious was overwhelming and as he stood up, he promptly fell forward and passed out, letting Buck catch him before he hit the floor. Though barely conscious, he had felt his body go limp as Buck picked him up and helped him back onto his cot to lay him down. 

Nathan leaned over Jesse, examining him. "You hear me, Jesse?" Asking the question to see how coherent Jesse was, Nathan surmised that the young man had been overly dehydrated and the headache he had from being beaten only made it worse. In turning around, he asked Buck to fetch a basin of water and a clean cloth, from the counter beside the small stove. No sooner had he turned back to examine Jesse had Buck returned and knelt down, beside Nathan, slightly worried. 

"He gonna be alright, Nathan?" Buck watched helplessly as Nathan applied the clean, wet cloth to Jesse's face and neck. His ears repeated the sound of Jesse calling him "papa" and tried to identify similar sounding words that would make sense but, came up with nothing. 

Nathan examined Jesse every few minutes to see how fast he was recovering and nodded an answer to Buck. "Yea, he'll be alright. Needs some water, food and maybe sleep. I noticed he ain't touched his food and when Chris and I questioned him about his pa, it seems his pa was a little bit hard on him." Choking back the memory of Jesse's back, Nathan felt ashamed to see the remnants of a beating that shouldn't have happened. 

"Those welts on his back? His pa beat this boy senseless, didn't he?" Buck asked, watching Jesse's sleeping face.

Again, Nathan nodded. "Lyla confirmed it to Chris and me, when we questioned her about him. Jesse showed us the evidence. Some are pretty bad. The sheriff told us Jesse was bad and terrorised his sister but, you get a beatin' like that, you learn to treat people like eggshells; fragile. Chris thought he was usin' her to cover up what he'd done. We were wrong." Nathan kept wiping Jesse down with the wet cloth, squeezing the cloth over his lips, to hydrate him. After a few more minutes of treating Jesse with the wet cloth, Nathan leaned in as Jesse started coming to. "You alright, son? You just got a bit overworked. You take it easy, for awhile."

"Gentlemen, I--" Mary had opened the door and paused in the doorway, trying to make sense of the scene before her. "What happened? Is he alright?" Closing the door behind her, Mary stepped forward and blinked a few times, focusing on Jesse. In waiting for Lyla to fall asleep, Mary had excused herself to take care of a few things, in the Telegraph Office. She had word from Jesse's mother, in Nebraska, and rushed over to give it to him.

Buck stood up and walked over to where Mary stood, just past the desk. Reaching out to place a hand on her arm, he explained Jesse wasn't feeling well and that it would be awhile before he was well enough to receive it. "He'll be alright. How's Lyla doin'?"

"That's good to hear." Mary took a breath before continuing. "She's fine. I finally managed to get her to rest. The telegraph is also addressed to the judge but, I thought Jesse might like to see it first." Mary glanced one last time over at Jesse and Nathan before telling Buck she would be back later on. She excused herself but glanced back again as she closed the door, behind her. Mary paused outside and stared down at the telegraph in her hand. She debated on waiting but the choice ate at her and, shaking her head, Mary headed back, towards the hotel to deliver the telegraph to the judge.

Nathan took the cloth away as Jesse still hadn't regained full consciousness. Turning to Buck, he thought of what to do to bring down the fever Jesse had developed. "I'm gonna run back to my room and grab my bag. See if I can take care of this fever before he boils over. You stay with him, until I get back?"

Buck nodded and quickly strode back over to kneel beside the cot. He focused on Jesse's pale and clammy face. "Hurry back." Buck retrieved the cloth Nathan had placed in the water basin and resumed wiping Jesse's face and neck with it. "Nathan," turning around as the healer was halfway to the door, "you might want to mention this to Chris, if you see him." He turned back to see a pained expression on the young man's face as Nathan hurried out of the jail, leaving him to feel helpless. "Hang in there, kid. It'd be a shame to make that pretty bride of your a widow, so young. So, you just hang in there."

~~~~~~~~~

Early evening and Lyla had become restless in her sleep. Terror-filled scenes replayed over and over in her mind. Her hands had felt nearly every inch of Jesse's face, hair and body. His scent after a bath and the feel of his warm arms around her gave her enough of an image that she could see him so clearly. She laughed and smiled as she could picture him with her but her smiles and laughter turned for the worse as Jesse had been ripped from her arms and dragged up, onto the scaffolding, the noose around his neck. "NO!" Lyla screamed, upsetting herself so much that she had flailed her arms and knocked herself out of bed to land harshly on the floor.

Vin had passed by on his way to his room for a small rest before his shift in the jail. He stopped beside the door, after hearing her scream, and removed his Mare's Leg from his side. "Lyla?!" Shoving his shoulder to the door, he burst in and scanned the room for the young woman, finding her on the floor. "Lyla? It's Vin Tanner. Are you alright?" Checking the room, he remained in the doorway until she answered. He knew better not to approach someone who was sight impaired for fear they might have a weapon, for protection. "Lyla, it's Vin. Are you alright?" Repeating his question and moving forward, he kept his wits about him as he knelt beside her, replacing his weapon to its holster. He could see that she had been crying and had upset herself.

Still sitting on the floor, on the opposite side she had originally been on. She had been sobbing, covering her face with her hands, wiping the tears away. "No." Sniffling and gasping for air, her efforts to stop her crying failed at every attempt. She had worked herself up into a fit and had been finding it hard to come down from the excitement and desperation she had placed on herself. Her legs had curled to one side, dress wrinkled and hair mussed and loosely falling out of the braid Mary had done for her. Tears fell on her dress and hit with a deft thud on the material.

Vin was at a loss of what to do. Gingerly, he placed a calm hand on her left arm. "How about we get you up, off the floor. Alright?" His voice was calm and soft. Helping her to stand up, Vin was taken aback by Lyla wrapping her arms around him and sobbing into his chest. "Worried about Jesse, aren't you?" He patted her back and held her for a long moment, shushing her sobs until she could control herself enough to sit back down on the bed. "Hey, he's gonna be alright. You gotta believe that. Tomorrow, he'll get a fair trial. Judge Travis'll see to that." Vin knelt back down, in front of her, as she sat on the side of the bed.

Lyla gasped for breath and nodded in reassurance. She had calmed down considerably since Vin had come into the room. "Mister Tanner, I'm not very hungry but, would you mind escorting me for a walk, please? I think I would feel better if I was out of this room. For a little while, at least." Her hands went to her hair and did her best to smooth back the free strands that had come loose.

Thinking for a moment and then looking up into her face and seeing a small smile, Vin nodded as he answered. "I'd be honoured, Miss Lyla. It's a bit chilly, out there. Can I get you a jacket?" Vin glanced aorund the room, eyes settling on the tall, simple brown wardrobe, at the far corner of the room.

Nodding, Lyla thought of where Mary said she had placed Jesse's duster, and a while shawl that Lyla had in her pack. "I have a shawl. I think Mrs. Travis placed it in the wardrobe." Her head raised as if she had been looking at Vin. She smiled as he patted her hand and whispered that he would get it for her. She listened to his footsteps as he walked to the far side of the room, retrieved her shawl and walked back. As he placed the thin white material around her shoulders, her hand brushed his as she reached up to take hold of it. Smiling nervously and moving her hand away, Lyla had almost forgotten that it was Vin, instead of Jesse, standing there. "Thank you, Mister Tanner." She stood up and waited for him to guide her to the door.

Vin placed his hand over hers as she held on, moving down the hallway and then carefully making their way down the two flights of stairs before exiting the hotel. "Where would you like to go? Any direction, in particular?" Vin kept his voice as calm as Jesse had spoken, in the schoolhouse. They stood on the front walk and waited for her to make up her mind.

"I would like to go to the general store, please. Perhaps, they have some books to read?" Lyla sounded hopeful but her mind was far from reading anything other than the news of Jesse's innocence. She let Vin lead the way, making small talk with him about the evening. "I wasn't always blind, you know. I would love to see yellows and blues and greens, again." A smile played among her lips as she remembered being a little girl, running and playing at her father's ranch, just outside of Echo. She had loved the sight of sun-kissed wildflowers and babbling brooks, the horses running around in their corral and chasing butterflies. 

Giving her a smile in return, Vin wondered what she was thinking of that had made her so happy in that moment. "Musta been very happy." The night was now creeping in and the fires along the street were being lit, warming the night and burning off the low-rising fog that crept in.

Lyla nodded. "I was ten when I became ill. Father and Charlie took care of me, the best they could. Charlie left for awhile, going all over the territory. Father had nurses and a doctor take care of me. A judge even came to visit me. He came to help me with my affairs." Lyla giggled. "I was ten. I didn't have affairs but, father saw to it I had everything set, in case I passed. Father passed a year later. Mother took care of me, after I was well enough to discharge the nurse." Lyla hushed herself and remembered where she was and who's company she was in. "Forgive me. I tend to run on, sometimes."

"No apologies necessary, Mrs. McCall." Vin smiled. He had enjoyed listening to her chat about her origins and a happier time and place than where she was. He patted her hand as it rested on his arm. Movement in the distance caught his attention and he looked up to see Chris making his way over to them from the other side of the street.

"Please, call me Lyla." Lyla listened to the sounds coming towards them, recognising them and announcing their owner correctly, before he came to a stop beside them. "Good evening, Mister Larabee." It had taken her years to perfect her skill, not just with footsteps but by the way a person smelled, moved and spoke. She had practised on her brother and tested herself on Jesse and her teachers at the school for the blind and deaf.

"Good evening, Lyla. Out for a walk?" Chris had caught them in the middle of the street, as they paused by the fire to warm themselves. It had been a chilly evening and the wind had picked up considerably since he had stepped out of the jail.

Nodding again, Lyla clutched her shawl closer to her. "Yes. I had asked Mister Tanner to escort me to the general store, for hopefully something to read. Would you care to join us?"

Chris smiled as they started walking again. 

Vin stepped up onto the walk, in front of the store and helped Lyla up the step. They stopped and Vin turned to Lyla, taking a breath, "Lyla, how did you know Chris was walking up to us?" He was curious and wondered if it could help in Jesse's defense.

Smiling again, Lyla reached up to feel the right sleeve of Chris's black duster. "Your coat, Mister Larabee, it makes the same swishing noise Jesse's does when he's wearing his guns. Your boots had the same rhythm on the street that they had walking across the floor of my hotel room." Swallowing and turning to Vin, she clarified knowing him, as well. "Mister Tanner, the leather of your coat has a clean smell but faintly gives off the scent of a pronghorn sheep, from Texas. I'm guessing around Comanche Springs? Also, your right leg walks heavier due to your firearm." Lyla smiled more confidently, not needing to see if she had been correct or not.

Chris and Vin looked down at themselves and then at each other. "Very good, Lyla. Are you sure you're blind?" Vin smiled back and escorted her into the store. He walked her up to the young woman behind the counter and then walked back over to where Chris stood, by the door. 

"Spoke with Nathan, about Jesse. Seems the goin' over, Jesse got, was worse than he let on. He collapsed in his cell. Buck and Nathan are carryin' him over to Nathan's." Chris's expression flattened but hinted at being worried for the young man. "Just spoke with the judge and he's goin' over to see how Jesse's doin'." Keeping his voice low, Chris turned his head away from the inside of the store, even though Lyla and the clerk were on the far side of the room, busying themselves with books and papers.

Vin sighed and glanced over at Lyla, smiling and feeling the pages of the only braile book the clerk had in stock. "He gonna be alright for trial, tomorrow?"

Chris shook his head. "Dunno. Mary says Judge Carson is comin' from Cedar City. Might be here by mid-morning. Buck said Jesse and Charlie had an altercation, this afternoon. Jesse said somethin' about knowin' Charlie's secret. Tomorrow might get more interestin'. We need to be on our guard." Chris watched as Lyla paid for the book and turned to find her escorts. Walking over to her, he grinned as she took his left arm, for support, while carefully feeling her way through to the doorway, a few feet away.

 

Continued.


	9. Chapter 9

Chris had left the restaurant and hotel while Vin escorted Lyla back up to her room, after their meal. It had been dark for some time and he had debated riding out to his now-finished stretch of land he had purchased, for some sleep. He made his way over to the Livery, where he had kept his horse, but glanced up to see the light on in Nathan's place. Wondering how Jesse was feeling, Chris climbed the stairs and knocked twice on the door, letting Buck know it was him and that it was alright to enter. Opening the door, he gave a quick glance over to Buck and then nodded in Jesse's direction, on the bed. "How's he doin'?"

Buck stood up and came closer to where Chris had stopped, at the end of the bed. "Nathan says he'll have a headache for awhile. Managed to get the swelling down. He's more tired than anything. He makes it through tomorrow without someone killin' him, it'll be a miracle." Buck looked from Chris to Jesse's sleeping form, on the bed. "When's the judge supposed to get here?"

"Just after breakfast, I'm guessing." Stepping closer and placing a hand on the endrail of the bed, Chris fixed his eyes on Jesse's face. He had watched the young man's expression, since he had come in, and noticed that the prisoner had been in pain but mostly -what looked like- agony over the coming trial. "I don't expect Carson to be too eager to get it started, seein' as how he sentenced Jesse to hang, already. If anything, it'll do more harm than good."

Buck inched forward and lowered his voice as he leaned closer to Chris. "Those marks on his back tell a different story. You followed this boy's story ever since we've been back here. His pa whooped this boy within an inch of his life and when he stood up for himself, he killed a man. You sayin' he still deserves to hang for that?" His anger welled up as he pointed over to Jesse. He understood what it meant to be a sheriff and to protect his loved ones; however, he wasn't about to doubt a man (or boy) that had been pushed to his limits. 

Chris's expression turned grim. "There's other ways to resolve that kind of dispute. Jesse's been open about what happened, sure. But, what happens tomorrow, when the full story comes out? Was Carson's judgment sound, or was it too hasty? Hell, he might roll into town, have a heart to heart with Travis and have his judgment stand. It doesn't matter what I, you, Vin, or anyone else thinks. Jesse chose to live by the gun. One day, if not tomorrow, he'll have to own up to what he did. Or, it'll dog him for the rest of his life. And now, Lyla's too."

"I've been in his Pa's shoes before, Chris. That badge holds some mighty strong power. Pretty soon, you start believin' there ain't nothing that can slow you down. When you get too big for yer britches, there ain't no listenin' to reason. No matter who tells it to ya. And when you get mad, you got no one else to help you relieve it, you toss 'em back and it makes you mad. So mad, you need to let it out." Buck lowered his voice to almost a whisper, his tone more firm. "That boy's been starin' at me, since we brought him back from Willow Ridge, like he's seen a devil. He deserves to have his side heard. And when Jesse tells his story, dry eye or not, that boy is gonna have one hell of a weight off his shoulders." His eyes met Chris's, driving his point home, "you can't stand there and say you'd deny him the right to make things right. What if he were Vin? Or Nathan? or Ezra? I know you did yer damndest to help Vin. So why should Jesse be any different?"

Chris took a moment to stare back at Buck. His head turned and his gaze fell on Jesse's sleeping form. He had tried to imagine Vin lying there. Chris sighed and swallowed the lump in his throat that didn't seem to go away. He thought of Lyla and how she would feel to hear Jesse had been convicted a second time, again, without being heard. "Alright."

~~~~~~~~~~~

Weightlessness and the feel of his head filled with seering water made Jesse feel more than ill. Every time he opened his eyes, pain would prevent his vision from being clear. The blur and nausea overwhelmed him as he shifted to the left, on bed. A groan escaped him. Moving slowly, Jesse's head turned and his eyes opened to stare at an unfamiliar wall. He moaned but caught his breath as he heard movement from across the room. Someone stood from sitting in a chair and was coming over to crouch down, beside the bed.

"Whoa, take it easy, son." Buck's voice was a lowered to a calm whisper. He studied Jesse's expression as the young man turned his head to see who had spoken to him and froze in terror when he found Buck sitting too close to him. "I ain't gonna hurt ya. You just take it easy, now."

Jesse breathed a little harder but managed to calm himself. "Where am I?" He tried to raise his right hand but found it had been shackled to the bedframe. His eyes widened as he realised that he couldn't move from the bed and only he and Buck were left in the strange room Nathan used for a clinic. His vision started to clear and the reverberation in his ears had ceased as he slowly curled and pushed himself to sit up. It had been a slow, almost stopped, transition but he wasn't willing to remain lying down and vulnerable for long. Looking around the room, Jesse quickly surmised that it was nearly morning and his trial would start soon.

"Easy now. You passed out. Nathan figured he'd bring you here. Sheriff really rattled yer brain, huh?" Buck sat back but kept his focus on Jesse. 

Jesse hardened himself, trying to understand why Buck was there and not Nathan, or Chris. "You here to finish me off?" Nodding to the holstered gun on Buck's side, he wondered who he could trust.

Buck shifted his position. "No. In fact, I thought we'd have ourselves a little talk. Since that night in Willow Ridge, you've been starin' at me like the Devil's on yer heels. You gonna explain it to me?" Buck touched a chord with Jesse but the younger man remained silent. "Those welts on yer back, yer Pa did those. Didn't he?" Again, Buck was answered with silent frustration. "You told Chris and Nathan about what happened in Echo. Lyla confirmed it. They'll help you, Jesse, but if I'm gonna help, I need to know why. Now, I heard what you told the Sheriff, this afternoon. And if you wanna wait for the trial, that's fine. I see a young man who wants to make sure his wife is safe but he also wants to swing for something he may or may not have done. I watched you tryin' to protect her, in the schoolhouse. How are you gonna protect her when you're dead?"

Bowing his head and turning away from Buck, Jesse swallowed. The one solitary candle that had burned for most of the night, now flickered and shadowed his regret and shame. It sat on the small reading desk, under the window, to the right of the bed. The glow enveloped the two men, half-hiding their features.

"Yer Pa's been hauntin' you. Hasn't he?" Buck's eyes searched the young man's face. The horrors he had seen in his own lifetime might have paled in comparison but he was unwilling to admit, not just to himself but to anyone, that Jesse had deserved the beatings made evident on his back. No matter how ruthless he had been as a child.

"Lyla's lucky she's blind. Some of the ways Papa'd look at her... 'specially when he was drunk. He wasn't always drunk. That night in the store, you walked in and I thought I hadn'ta killed him. I can't prove I didn't kill him. Papa sent lotsa people to the gallows. Some were my friends, and he had that same look you're givin' me, right now, every time I'd look at him and ask why." Jesse turned back to stare at Buck. "No matter who I tell, this judge or Carson, or you,.... I can't prove my innocence when it's all gone. The only difference now is, Lyla's gonna hear everything. She's gonna have to live with it, regardless if this judge lets me live or sends me swingin'. What's worse, she'll find out just who her brother, the sheriff, really is."

The pit in his stomach deepened and his mouth went dry. Inhaling and exhaling slowly, Buck stood up and walked around to sit beside Jesse, on the bed. "Lyla's a sweet, caring, intelligent young woman. She's gonna find out who her brother is regardless of now or later. The only difference is, you have the opportunity to be there and help her through this. I don't know about this Judge Carson or what really happened, that day. Judge Travis, son, if he says he'll hear you out, then that's what he'll do. It ain't just you against the world, anymore. Lyla's gonna be countin' on you to be there for her." Buck's voice remained just above a whisper and met eyes with Jesse, several times, to make sure the younger man heard and understood him. 

~~~~~~~~

The door to the jail was yanked open and a stout, older gentleman stepped in. He was an elderly gentleman with a receding hairline gone completely white, matching his bushy mustache, looking somewhat outdated. His rounded figure and stalky legs only added to his forceful appearance. Rounded spectacles had been freshly shined and cleaned in order to clearly see the young man between the bars. He had glanced at Jesse for only a minute before turning to stare down his nose at Chris, who now stood up, from sitting at the desk, to acknowledge the stranger. "I'm here to see a Chris Larabee. You may tell him Judge Gregory Carson is here to see him." Brushing the dust and lint off of his fresh gray suit, Carson hadn't bothered to look at the man across from him, let alone acknowledge the hand offered to him.

"Judge Carson, I'm Chris Larabee. Thank you for coming." Chris's expression was flat but he managed to keep his tone in a respectful manner. "It seems Jesse, here, requests a retrial about an incident that happened three years ago." Chris watched the judge's posture and expression as he turned back to, again, stare down his nose at the outlaw. 

With a deep sigh and bored tone, Judge Carson made his way over to the cell Jesse once again sat in. "Jesse McCall. I understand you wish to challenge my verdict. Have you any proof of your innocence, young man? Or, are you merely wasting this town's time?" 

The judge's voice had been exactly as Jesse remembered it; gruff and loud. Jesse stood and walked over to the bars, leaning on them and tilting his head to look between the bars. "I don't know what kind of proof you mean but, they're willin' to hear my side of things. This time, you won't shut up mine or my witness's story." Nodding back to Chris, Jesse kept his composure as calm as the day he had met the seven. His eyes leveled on the elder judge, almost daring the man to glare back at him. His headache had cleared, more than the day before, and since the talk with Buck, Jesse felt his confidence rise. 

"Witness?" The word was spoken crisply, as if in a doubting manner.

A corner of Jesse's mouth lifted. "That's right. Judge Travis is gonna give me a fair trial. Then, he's gonna decide if I swing or live." His eyes remained calm and cool as they stared through the bars, at the judge. 

Carson came closer, lowering his voice. "Your father was a good man and sheriff. You're as cocky now as you were then. The years of chase and lawlessness haven't changed you, young man. The people of Echo have already handed down their judgement. Murdering a man of the law, alone, is grounds for hanging. Murdering your father'll send you to Hell. You best make your peace, McCall."

Jesse's expression hadn't changed, not even a flutter. He blinked calmly and breathed slowly, silently counting to 10, to calm himself. 

Chris silently admired the way Jesse had handled himself. Despite his smug grin, Jesse had kept his cool as if he had been studying Chris for years. Calm, collected and a touch of cockiness. Had Jesse been his son, Chris wouldn't have denied himself the proud smile. He smiled to himself before Judge Travis entered the room and cleared his throat, bringing the attention to him.

"Judge Carson, I'm Judge Oren Travis, the presiding judge in this town. Mister McCall is going to be given a fair trial. Mister Larabee and his six companions will see to that. You've been requested here as a consult and possible witness for the Prosecution. Therefore, I cannot permit you to speak to the prisoner until the trial begins." Judge Travis stood just inside the room and examined the scene, noting Jesse taking a step back and the older Judge turning around to face him.

Carson cleared his throat loudly and glared over at Oren. "I came here to see that my ruling stands. I've been a judge a long time, young man. Jesse McCall is a heartless murderer and deserves to hang for his crimes. He can plead his case to a thousand judges but my ruling stands. You have no authority to change it." The elder judge stomped over to where Judge Travis stood and fumed at the possibility of being overridden. He spent only a few years on the bench more than Travis and had become very territorial and conceited by his rulings. 

Judge Travis took a breath. He took a quick look back at Jesse and then back to the judge that now stood before him. "The past of this young man will be discovered in trial. Guilty or innocent, the facts will decide the fate of Jesse McCall. So far, he's been on his best behaviour and under the watchful eye of Mister Larabee and his friends. You are welcome to get settled in and gather your notes from the first trial. I suggest you get something to eat, before the trial. We start in two hours." Meeting eyes with Jesse and then over to Chris, he nodded and left, not giving Judge Carson the satisfaction of audience to a tantrum.

~~~~~~~

"Jesse McCall, you stand before this court on four counts of murder." Judge Travis sat at his makeshift bench and looked over his docket, before looking up at the young man that stood before him, in handcuffs. The Grainery that served as the courthouse had been full of townspeople, among them sat the seven men that kept the town safe. He had only concerned himself with the prisoner at hand and hadn't paid much attention to the visiting judge and sheriff, that sat at the Prosecution table, scowling.

Jesse's mouth parted. "Four?"

Judge Travis noted Jesse's confusion and glanced down at the docket, in front of him. "Yes. In the case of the murder of Sheriff Sloan McCall, in the town of Echo, seeing as Judge Carson and his notes on the account of the first case are accounted for, I'm granting an appeal. You may be seated, next to your lawyer." Nodding to Ezra, who stood beside Jesse with a hand on Jesse's left shoulder.

"That's only one. If I'm guilty of one, I can't be innocent of the other." Jesse glanced back at Sheriff Drake and Judge Carson in silent horror, remembering the first trial. He then met eyes with Ezra and was ushered to sit down. Turning his head, slightly, to look back at the crowd and find Mary sitting next to and consoling Lyla.

Judge Travis sighed and sat back in his chair. "Yes, well, we'll see about that." His eyes fell on the young lady Jesse had placed his attention on. He then continued with his statement. "About the matter of the three dead men you shot, just outside of town, the young lady you were traveling with wishes to tell her side of things. I will ask the court jury to reserve their comments to themselves, in this matter. The young lady is blind, not deaf and therefore, is considered a witness for this trial." He nodded over to Josiah as the preacher escorted Lyla from her seat, to the chair, designated to be for the witnesses.

Keeping his eyes focused on Lyla, Jesse wet his lips and took a ragged breath. He knew Lyla would tell the truth about what happened and he hadn't been worried. His concern lie in the following testimony of Carson and her brother, in the death of his father. He hadn't wanted to upset her or, to have her find out that her brother was not just the Sheriff of Echo.

"Will you please state your name, for the court?" Judge Travis spoke clearly but softly as he looked over to her.

Lyla inhaled, calming herself from her rising nervousness. "Lyla McCall. Jesse's wife." Lyla swallowed her unease as she said her married name. She could feel the weight of so many eyes on her but deep breath after deep breath, she reminded herself that she had friends among the crowd and that she would be alright. She wore a rose-coloured skirt and a white blouse that Mary had helped pick out for her. She was clean and her hair had been nicely braided.

Charle stood up, furious of how she had addressed herself. He was silenced by the hardened look of Judge Travis acknowledging him as well as the firm hand of Judge Carson, on his arm. Sneering over at Jesse but keeping quiet, he sat back down and crossed his arms in protest. 

"Mrs. McCall, would you please tell the court about the events leading up to the deaths of the three men, a week ago?" Judge Travis turned his head back to study Lyla, who waited patiently in her chair.

Lyla took another deep breath and straightened in her chair, folding her hands in her lap. "Jesse and I had stopped for awhile, to get something to eat and rest. He had gone to catch some fish while I stayed by the horse and wagon. I heard some sounds and got scared but, Jesse told me it was alright and that it was just him. He left me for a minute or two to fix us something to eat and that's when someone grabbed me. They pulled at my dress and whispered vile things in my ears. They said Jesse stole their gold and that he'd better return it. We only passed through Beaver City. He didn't steal any gold." Lyla paused to control her shaking as she relived those horrifying moments. A hand lifted to her right ear, the same ear that had been assaulted by filthy words by the two men holding her captive. After a moment, she continued, staring straight ahead, as if looking directly at Jesse, as he listened to her recollection. "The man that held me, squeezed me tighter and tighter and another man kept pulling at my hair and dress until he ripped my skirt. I screamed and heard another man threaten Jesse. He warned them to let me go but they laughed at him. I've never been so scared in my life. Bu- but, Jesse kept telling me it'd be alright. I heard the first shot and then the man that was holding me let me go. Jesse warned them again to let us alone but, the third man was angry. He started to say something and I heard a click of an older gun. It sounded rusted and dirty. And then I heard the second shot. I tried to get away but I was grabbed and yanked around. He smelled worse than his friend, like licquor and sweat. Jesse started talking to the second man, warning him to let me go. But, the man cursed at him. I heard another shot but, the man was still alive. He- he screamed at us and promised to kill Jesse. We got back into the wagon and left. But, he was still alive. I don't understand how he was dead." Lyla breathed, listening to her own breaths, wishing she was in Jesse's arms, wishing for his safety. "The next town we came to was Willow Ridge."

Judge Travis listened intently on what she said, carefully watching her gestures. "Thank you. A few questions before I excuse you. Did either of you come into contact with those three men, while in Beaver City?"

Lyla thought back. "No. We stayed in the wagon and Jesse only asked a few people, on the street, if there was a Justice in town. They said no and we continued on."

"What made you decide to leave Echo with Mr. McCall?" Travis' eyes fell on Jesse as he asked the question. 

Jesse remained focused on Lyla and fisted his hands in attempt to control himself. He wanted to run up to her and take her away from the trial and the people that might speak ill of her and their union. Yet, he remained seated and calm.

"I love him. He asked me to be his wife and I said yes." Lyla smiled nervously. Listening to the hushed murmurs of the crowd.

Charlie boiled, hearing his sister profess her love to an outlaw and murderer. "That's a lie! He coerced her inta marryin' him!" Bolting up and pointing an angry finger in the direction of the defendant, he stared directly over at the judge, as if demanding her last statement be stricken from the jury.

Standing up and glaring over at Charlie, Jesse stopped himself from speaking as the gavel banged on the table and Judge Travis ordered both men to sit down and be quiet. 

Ezra had stood and placed a hand on Jesse's shoulder, telling him to sit down. He had been joined by Buck, who had taken to standing on the other side of Jesse, to control him as Chris and Josiah made their way over to control the outraged sheriff.

"Jess- ?" Lyla had tried to follow the commotion but became frightened by the banging of the gavel. 

Jesse turned his attention from Charlie to Lyla but made no move towards her. "It's alright, darlin." His voice was as calm as he had always spoken to her, after a scare. Sighing and sitting down, he kept his eyes on Lyla but also watched Charlie, in case he was attacked.

"Sheriff Drake, Mr. McCall, there'll be no more outbursts from either of you, until this trial is adjourned. Is that clear? And, I'll advise the counsel to maintain control over their clients." Judge Travis had seemed unaffected by the outburst and firmly set his jaw as he looked from Charlie to Jesse, waiting for each to admit they understood what was expected of them. "Then, let's continue." He nodded for the men to take their seats before excusing Lyla from the stand and calling Chris to tell what happened when he and the posse came upon the scene Jesse and Lyla had left.

Mary had walked up to collect Lyla and take her back to her seat as Chris passed them to sit in the witness seat. She had noticed the young woman shivering from fright and rubbed Lyla's arms, whispering soft words to ease her as they sat down in their seats.

"Mister Larabee, would you please tell the court about your findings of the situation, regarding Jesse and Lyla McCall?" Judge Travis looked over at Chris but glanced back to watch Jesse paying full attention to the rest of the story.

Chris sighed and looked out at the crowd, finding the faces of the six other men and finally resting on Sheriff Drake. "The posse and I were chasing Jesse and Lyla, on account of Sheriff Drake. We were an hour behind them, at most. The last man alive was bleeding pretty bad from his right thigh. We figured he was out of his head a bit, from some of the things he was saying. He talked about how he and his friends were wantin' to 'dance with a pretty girl' but the kid she was with was wantin' to fight. He told us Jesse stole their gold but that was after his friend was about to kill him but Jesse beat them to it. By then, he'd lost too much blood." His eyes met with Jesse's briefly. "The one furthest away from the other two had his gun out and cocked but not fired. If it was a robbery, nothin' seemed to be missin'."

Nodding, Judge Travis had a question for him. "McCall had nothing of their's on him, when you arrested him?"

"No, sir. No gold, nothin' I could tell." Chris seemed bored by the trial but waited to be excused before getting up and returning to his seat.

"Thank you. You're excused." The judge's eyes settled on Jesse as he called the outlaw to the stand. 

Jesse sat there, nervously. He swallowed and looked to Ezra for assurance. "Well, I came back from the creek, about a few hundred feet from where our fire was. I went to the wagon to fix the fish I caught but I turned around when she screamed. I only saw the first two, one was holdin' Lyla from behind and the other was messin' with her, touchin' her and scarin' her. The leader, Simms, came up from behind me. He was tellin' me I stole from them but they were too drunk to notice anythin like that. One of them started rattlin' on about what they were gonna do to Lyla. Pawin' at her and scarin' her really bad. I told them to stop and let her go but, they just laughed and when they made a move on her dress, I shot the first one, between the eyes. The second one freaked out and chased after her. That was when I saw Simms pointin' his revolver at me so, I shot him in the chest. The third one," Jesse paused and stared over at Lyla, who blushed, embarrassed by what the court was listening to, "he tried to beg for his life. I wasn't gonna kill him but, he reached for his knife and had that kinda look in his eye. He took a couple steps towards me so, I shot him in the leg. He yowled and I got Lyla outta there."

Judge Travis took a long, quiet few moments to think about the testimonies. He took a deep sigh and weighed the evidence. Motioning for Jesse to rise, he cleared his throat and sat forward. "Young man, you stand before me accused of murder of the three men, down by Whippoorwill Creek. After hearing the testimony of both Lyla McCall and Chris Larabee, I find you not guilty of the charge. Your are free to go." He paused as a smile spread on Jesse's face. 

The courtroom had gone silent. The jury had given their verdict of the murder of the three men and had been excused.

"In the matter of the murder of Sheriff Sloan McCall, I am hereby granting your appeal. Sheriff Drake, you may take your prisoner into custody until a new jury can be summoned." The judge focused on Jesse's shocked expression as Charlie stood up and moved closer to collect the outlaw. He saw the sneer adorn the sheriff's mouth and added, "Mister Larabee, Mister Tanner, will you assist the sheriff in escorting this young man back to his cell?"

Charlie hadn't noticed the two men gathered around him as he shoved Jesse, harshly, into the direction of the door.

 

Continued.


	10. Chapter 10

Mary had been finishing up with her other columns and getting ready for the next stage in Jesse's trial when a knock on her office door startled her. Turning to see who had opened the door, after knocking, she was relieved to see Chris remove his hat as he stepped in, closing the door behind him. "Chris. I was just getting ready for the trial. How's Jesse?" She had paused from gathering papers and straightening her desk up to ask as the man in black came closer, hat in his hands.

Chris stopped a few steps away from her and watched her as she sifted papers together, giving herself a papercut on her left thumb. His eyes watched as she raised her hand to her lips and gingerly sucked on the small cut. "Vin's keeping him company. Sheriff Drake seems a bit too eager to wait for the verdict before giving Jesse his punishment. How's Lyla holding up?"

Still holding the side of her left thumb to her mouth, Mary walked around to the front of her desk and sat on the edge, a foot from where Chris stood. "Better. She's resting. After her testimony of Whipporwill Creek, I don't think it's a good idea to bring her into Sheriff McCall's murder trial. Before I left her room, Nathan examined her." Her downcast eyes had feared looking up, into his calm blue ones. "She hasn't been feeling well, for a few days. Regardless if Jesse's innocent or guilty, the stress might be too much for her to handle." 

Sighing and letting the news sink in, Chris thought out what the next step was. "Anyone else know?"

Mary shook her head. "No. We thought it best not to tell the sheriff or Jesse, just yet." 

Chris nodded and remained silent. His mind played scenarios of Jesse finding out he would be a father and then the verdict of the next trial being guilty, and then innocent. His mind also played the scenario of Lyla's brother finding out about the child and gave him no happy outcome. "For now, let's keep it between the four of us. This kind of news won't do any good at the trial."

Mary agreed. "What if Jesse is found guilty? Sheriff Drake might do something rash against her for testifying in Jesse's favour."

Shaking his head, Chris disagreed. "No, he loves his sister. It's Jesse, he's not too fond of." Chris placed his hat down, on the desk, beside her before resting his hands on her arms for comfort. "The judge won't let anything happen. The others and I'll protect her, and Jesse, if it comes to that."

Again, Mary nodded. Stepping forward, Mary rest her head on Chris's chest. The sound of his calm and soft heartbeat soothed her. She wrapped her arms around his waist and held him, letting all of her anxieties slip away. She smiled as he reciprocated the emotion and held her gently to him. 

Her hair smelled clean and her skin had been lightly perfumed with roses. Chris had tried so hard to remember what Sarah smelled like and felt like, in his arms. So far, he couldn't. His eyes closed, briefly as he inhaled her clean scent, once again. The room and outside had fallen silent around them. Chris breathed calmly and then opened his eyes and found himself holding Mary, not Sarah. Releasing her and taking a step back, he felt as if he couldn't breathe. The emotions he had denied himself, for so long, had pressed against him in a fit of desperation. "I should get back to the jail. Let Vin get some rest."

Mary took a moment to gather herself, looking away from him and taking shallow breaths. She had known them all for only a short time but felt that Chris had felt something for her, as she had for him. She hadn't been completely certain and had taken a big chance in embracing him. Mary hadn't been one to be so forward but, in taking a deep breath, she stepped forward and pulled him into a kiss. She had only wanted it to be a moment before she regained her composure and he pulled away but, it had lasted and, to her amasement, he had leaned into the kiss. When it ended, she felt her cheeks redden with embarrassment. "I, I um--...."

Chris paused to watch her reaction to what she had done. With a breath and small grin, he leaned over and replaced her stumbling words with his own kiss. It only lasted a few seconds bu had been enough to force Mary's knees to give out and fall against him. Chris had been waiting for the chance to show Mary how much he cared for her but never seemed to have the gusto to tell her. The kiss she had given him proved to him that she had been ready and willing to show him how she felt that it left him with no choice but to match her claim. Their lips seemed to come together and melt into one as their embrace deepened. He felt her hand on his chest, feeling the rhythm of his heartbeat. 

In pulling away from each other, each took a break before continuing with their pre-interruption assignments. 

Mary watched as Chris excused himself from her office and reached up to touch her lips, where his had been. She sighed and swallowed, feeling her body get warm from remembering his touch. The same hand that had felt his heartbeat now touched her own. The quickening of pace as she flushed in thought of if he had stayed. With Billy at school, and no one to disturb them, they could have easily let it go farther. Taking another deep breath, Mary turned back to her desk and stared at the paperwork, she had just organised.

The door opened again and promptly closed. Mary had only a few seconds to turn and gasp as Chris scooped her up, into his arms and carried her back into her bedroom, kicking the door closed, with his right boot. He had placed her on the bed and leaned over her, kissing her lips, gently, as he unfastened his gun belt and placed it on the floor. Tracing kisses down her jawline to her left collarbone, he could feel her arms around him, holding him closer. Sliding a hand to her ankle and slowly moving the skirt of her pink, flowered dress up her bent leg, her legs easing apart. Moving the same hand between them to find the open part of her drawers, Chris paused to unbutton his own pants and shove the material aside.

Mary gasped as he entered her, causing Chris to pause and ask if she was alright. When she nodded and he continued, she bit her lower lip to ease the fluttering in her stomach. She had wanted him for so long but couldn't bring herself to commit to him as one of the doves he preferred, in Purgatory or Wickes Town. Mary had missed her husband and felt sadness for letting go of Gerard but she had wanted Chris. The rhythmic thrusts deepened and her gasps became more strained. Their lips met again and she could feel him pant and groan against her. 

Chris shoved himself in, again and again, reminding himself to be careful. His thrusts were met by her growing need and desire for him. He was careful not to move too fast or be too greedy but that had changed as he felt her hands on his hips, fisting themselves into the material of his pants. Gaining momentum and becoming more frantic in his movements, Chris could feel himself on the verge of release. His lips moved lower to kiss her neck as her hands toyed with his hair. Hearing her guttural moan in his ear called him to finish and strain as they held each other tightly.

~~~~~~~

Jesse sat in the chair, in front of the crowd of people that had gathered, as well as the new jury. Raking his top front teeth over his lower lip, he swallowed nervously as he started. His eyes moved over the waiting crowd but settled on Lyla. His mouth went dry and his voice cracked as he cleared his throat to speak. "When I was 12, my older sister was killed. She was supposed to get me for school. Instead, I was watchin' my Pa play poker, in the Saloon. She got mixed up in conversation with a few other people watchin' and we got separated. Beth, my sister, caught a tinhorn palmin' cards and tried to tell Pa but, he wouldn't listen. A scuffle started between the man and Pa. Pa was the sheriff so, everyone thought they were safe but, the man was his friend from the war. When it came to keepin the peace, Pa was the best, except when it was his friend that was on the wrong side. I was talkin' and laughin' with another boy, in the saloon. Then I heard the pop and Beth fell to the floor. There was so much blood." He paused to brush a tear from his cheek and gather himself before resuming. "Pa arrested his friend for murder but, he didn't make a move to help Beth. Didn't protect her or nothin'. After that, my ma had my uncle, from Nebraska, come and get her. She couldn't stand to be in the same town that Beth was killed in. She wanted me to go with her but, I wanted to stay. So, my uncle bought me my guns and taught me how to shoot. I got so fast. He made me promise not to go lookin' for a fight. Or, I'd be the one waitin' to swing." Jesse smiled at the humour and irony of his uncle's warning. "funny how things work. But, I promised him that much. I wasn't gonna let no one else lose a loved one." Jesse bowed his head as he paused again, in his sister's memory.

The room had fallen still and silent. Mary Travis took notes and stole glances over at Chris and then back to Judge Travis, who allowed the young man to speak his story. 

Feeling all eyes on him, Jesse searched for the strength to continue. "Pa went down to help the soldiers in the war. But, when he came back, he was different. His head wasn't right. By then, Charlie Drake was the deputy and tried to use his badge for his own dirty dealings."

"You don't know what yer talkin' about, boy!" Charlie stood up and slammed his fist down on the table, in front of him. His booming voice upsetting the silence in the room and only became louder as Judge Travis banged his gavel to maintain order. He had moved to shout over Judge Carson's right shoulder as the judge and acting counselour stood to compose his client.

Jesse's eyes fell back on Lyla as her hands flew to her ears, her face turned away from the commotion. Turning his head to look at the judge, he waited for acknowledgement to speak.

Judge Travis banged the gavel once more and warned the visiting sheriff he would receive a contempt charge, if he didn't silence himself and behave. His head turned and he nodded to Jesse to continue. 

"When I was 15, I was helpin' out in the Livery. Met all kinds of people; some passin' through, others tryin' to stay. I was up, in the hay loft, when I saw Sheriff Drake talkin' to Mister Bromley, the founder of Echo. I could barely hear 'em but it seemed Mr. Bromley got real mad a time or two. I asked Pa if Mister Bromley would take away his job and give it to Sheriff Drake. He told me I was hearin' things. But, that's when Pa started drinkin' real heavy-like. My ma already moved away and the only friend I had in town was Lyla. So, I stayed there. Anyway, the town saw Pa as a war hero, even though, the other side won, down at Picacho Pass. By the time I was 17, people came and left faster'n a raindrop soaks the ground. One night, I found out why. Charlie Drake and Judge Carson were tryin' to buy up the town so that they could sell it to the railroad." Jesse's accusation caught the audience off guard and another, loud uproar started between Carson jumping to his feet and screaming for an objection while Charlie adamantly denied the statement. Jesse, stood up and fired back that he had several other pieces of proof.

"Young man, you will sit down or be held in contempt!" Judge Travis had now stood up and heavily banged his gavel on the table he used as his bench. "Judge Carson, you will control your client as well as yourself, or I will have Mister Larabee and Mister Tanner control you. Is that clear? This retrial is to discover the entire story of the death of Sheriff McCall, not to resort to a mud brawl. Now, sit down. All of you." He had barely raised his time-worn voice but was fully ready to use force, if necessary. He remained standing until Judge Carson and Sheriff Drake sat back down, and then turned his attention back to Jesse, still standing. As Jesse sat back down, he clarified his expectations to the youth. "Young man, I won't have you disrupt my courtroom, again. Is that clear?"

Jesse nodded, meeting the judge's eye. "Yes sir."

Judge Travis also sat back down and waved his hand for Jesse to continue.

Once again, his eyes fell on Lyla. He hadn't wanted to put her through the trial and secretly wished she would excuse herself but, no such luck had come. Sighing and continuing, Jesse prayed for a miracle. "A few months after my 17th birthday, Sheriff Drake and Pa were sittin' at the table, in Pa's house, drinkin'. I was supposed to be doin' chores but I overheard them talkin'. Drake was tryin' to get Pa to sell the land we had. I tried to tell Pa it was a mistake. He told me not to sass him and knocked me into the wall. I don't remember much after that." Bowing head again, this time in shame, Jesse swallowed the lump in his throat and couldn't bring himself to meet the watchful eyes of Chris Larabee or the other six men that had watched over him. With a deep breath, he continued. "A month later, he came home, one night, and saw that I was sittin' on the porch with Lyla. We were just talkin' and I was readin' to her from a dime novel." He smiled as he remembered the afternoon with her. "He uh, he pulled up to the house and told me to take her home. He didn't want me around her or any Drake. He followed me to the barn and was screamin at me to hurry up. When I couldn't do it fast enough, he tore the reins from my hand and whipped me 'til I passed out. After that, he musta scared himself 'cause he was drunk less and less. But we still fought. Just before my 18th birthday, I told him I wanted to be a deputy. Said I got pretty good with a gun. Better'n he was, drunk or sober. He told me I was stupid for thinkin' like that and that I had to grow up, first. We yelled about everything. I told him Charlie Drake's been plannin' to take his badge and then buy the whole town from Mister Bromley. I told him, I SAW him do nothin' to save Beth or to keep my ma from leavin' us. He told me that," he paused and stared at the floor, in front of where Ezra sat, "he didn't want to see me become a criminal and that he'd done all he could to keep from bein' a bad pa."

Judge Carson glared down his nose at the young man that sat in the witness chair, doing his best to control the shaking in his limbs. He had met eyes with Jesse only once, during the testimony, and silently threatened him from spilling the most kept secret that would utterly turned the case around in Jesse's favour. But now, he knew Jesse would go for broke and offer up anything to keep him from being hung.

A long, deep breath and forcing himself to sit up, in the chair, and look at no one else but Judge Gregory Carson, Jesse forced his calm demeanour to return and finish his confession. "Sheriff Drake murdered my Pa." His hands now shook, freely, as he finished his statement and looked from Carson to Drake and then finally resting on Lyla. His heart sank into his stomach as he watched her expression turn from calm to confusion to panic to ultimate heartbreak.

The courtroom was in an uproar. The crowd talking volumes over each other about the taboo that had been broken. The gavel banged loudly and Judge Travis repeated the words for quiet. 

Jesse sat frozen in the chair and placed the same monotone expression he had often wore throughout his time of being on the run. Once the room had been quieted, Judge Travis examined his calm tone and asked for proof. "Pa was stone sober that day. The night before, he told me my Ma had agreed to come back. He said he was gonna try and be a good man. But, that day, we had an argument. He reached for his Jennings. I was faster. I knew it. I begged him not to touch that damn gun. I drew mine, just in case but, I didn't pull the trigger."

Ezra, who had remained silent through the trial, now stood and asked a question, in acting as Jesse's lawyer. "How do you know you didn't pull the trigger?"

"Both my guns were empty. I took 'em out shootin' at old bottles, for practise. Didn't get a chance to reload before I went to talk to him. Didn't think I needed to. And it wasn't two seconds before Sheriff Drake came through the side door." Jesse now visibly shook in his chair. "I loved my pa. I didn't want to kill him. Not even after what he's done to me, or my family."

Holding Jesse's gaze, Ezra stepped forward and directed his next question to Judge Travis. "Young Mister McCall," he drawled, "can you provide evidential facts of this alleged insinuation?"

"Huh?"

Ezra clarified, "Proof."

Jesse panned from Ezra to Sheriff Drake. The shaking in his body ceased and his expression returned to it's cool tone. "I've been wanderin' around Echo for three years, tryin' to get the proof. Sheriff Drake carries the shell that held the bullet that killed my pa, in his gunbelt. Second slot on the left side. All his bullets come from San Francisco. Mine are homemade."

Judge Carson smirked and stood up. "Objection! It's been three years since Sloan McCall's murder. These boys could have changed out their weapons or ammunition since then. The boy is assuming facts not in evidence. He also admits to have been in and out of the town of Echo, looking for some shred of proof, or mock-up thereof. One bullet looks the same in a batch of a thousand. With no crime scene to taint, he could have planted that casing any number of times." Brow-beating the younger judge, Carson remained by his own findings of guilty. 

"No!" Lyla stood up, determined to help her husband. "Judge Travis, may I speak? Please?"

Jesse stood up, confused at what she might have to offer. "Lyla?"

"Go ahead, young lady." Looking from Lyla to Vin, who stood not to far from where Ezra sat, he motioned for the tracker to bring him Jesse's gunbelt.

Lyla shifted but made no move to leave her spot. "There is a difference in the packaging. Being with Jesse, I've learned to do a lot of things, by myself. Something Charlie never wanted me to do. He was afraid I might hurt myself. One of the things Jesse let me help him with was making his own bullets. He uses a finer grain. It's lighter than the packaged bullets. Charlie uses a bullet with heavier grain and they smell like machine oil." Her eyes stared straight ahead but, even blind, she knew Jesse was smiling at her.

The door to the Grainery opened and Vin's footsteps sounded a brisk rhythm on the floorboards as he made his way to where Judge Travis still sat. Jesse's gunbelt and twin .45 Colts in his hands. Placing the belt on the table and backing up, he returned to where he stood only a few minutes before being tapped to retrieve the objects from the jail.

"Are these your guns and belt, Jesse?" Judge Travis looked over the belt and holstered guns but made no move to touch them.

Stepping forward and taking a closer look at the items, he nodded. "Yessir. My initials are carved into the inside of the belt, just behind the buckle." He waited for the judge to examine the belt and nod in agreement. 

Sliding out four bullets, from random places, in the belt, Judge Travis examined each bullet carefully and looked for telltale markings of handmade reshelling. "Mister-- Sanchez, will you bring me Sheriff Drake's gunbelt, please?" He continued to stare at, weigh and feel the bullets in his hands as he waited for Josiah to return with the requested gunbelt. It had only been a few moments before the door opened again and Josiah made his way to the Judge's table. Keeping Jesse's items together, Judge Travis moved the outlaw's belt to the side as he now carefully examined the Sheriff's belt and guns. "Sheriff Drake, are these your guns and belt?" Raising an eyebrow as Charlie hadn't answered right away, he paused to look up at the young man.

"Yea, they're mine." Charlie had stared at the belt now in question and correctly identified his own markings on the handle of the right gun. "There's a triangle carved on the underside of the grip." Again, Judge Travis confirmed.

Carefully studying the bullets of each belt before finding the empty casing, Judge Travis sighed and removed his glasses, rubbing his eyes. "Very well. There'll be a brief recess while I look over Judge Carson's notes and review the new evidence. We will resume in two hours. Mister Larabee, you may take Mister McCall back into custody, until we resume. Sheriff Drake, I am placing you under house arrest, until we get this issue settled. Mister Wilmington, please take Sheriff Drake into custody. This court is in recess." With the bang of the gavel, Judge Travis gathered the contents on the table and waited for the court to disperse before making his way back to Mary's newspaper.

~~~~~~~~~

JD sat on the bench, outside of the jail and toyed with a piece of wood he had skinned with his knife. "Think Judge Travis'll let Jesse off, Josiah? I mean, him accusin' Drake like that was pretty convincin'. And, Lyla speakin' for Jesse's defense...." He knew things had to have their proper order of business but wasn't completely sure Jesse was innocent.

Josiah looked up from his book of classic literature. Looking out to the street, watching passing people and carts as people headed home for lunch, he took a breath and thought before answering. "Well, it's tough to say, JD. Killin' a man, whether it be an accident or on purpose, ain't something the Lord looks too kindly on."

"If the judge says he's innocent, do you think Chris'll ask him to stay? Be apart of us?" JD hadn't made up his mind whether or not he accepted Jesse, or the loss in the duel between them.

Josiah thought for a moment on the possibility of Jesse's innocence. "I suppose, he might. Bright young man, handy with a gun. Although, it might be better luck if we don't look too far ahead. The tables can turn, no matter how the cards are dealt." Glancing over at JD and catching the youngest of the seven's expression, he queried, "Are you sure you'd be able to let go of Willow Ridge?"

JD scoffed and shifted, uneasily. "Me? Jealous of a kid?" Shifting and scoffing more, JD shook his head. "He's good but, not that good."

Josiah only nodded as their eyes met. Raising an eyebrow, he nodded down to what was left of the piece of wood in JD's hand. He smirked as JD noticed that his piece of wood had now been whittled down to a toothpick. A smirk as JD threw down the destroyed wood and sat back in a huff. "JD, jealousy can make a mouse out of a lion."

"What's that mean?"

Taking a breath and shifting on the bench, Josiah clarified, "sometimes, beating a man don't make you better. It only means a man has to be more, to himself, to overcome his greatest obstacle. Jesse's had to deal with plenty of hardships, in his life. He fought for them. You've overcome your own hardships. Whatever comes out of this day, should be something met with humility and respect, for both sides. I reckon the Lord put you in each other's path to teach the other what you've learned. It's the Devil that wants you to despise him for it." Josiah patted JD's left knee and stood up to make his way over to the Saloon, for a drink, while JD thought about what he had said.

~~~~~~~~~

Within an hour, Jesse was being led from the jail back down to the Grainery, where court had been held. Having Chris on one side and JD on the other, Jesse felt no more free than he had before. The sun seemed to beam down on him as if it were a spotlight. The heat from the day felt ten times hotter than an hour, prior. He couldn't bring himself to look up and stare at the faces of the townspeople, even though neither of his crimes took place in their town. 

Buck and Vin were escorting the elder judge and Sheriff Drake, from the hotel. Both groups missing sight of each other, in the street. 

Charlie watched as Mary and Lyla stood on the walk, speaking softly to one another. "I wanna speak to my sister." He stopped in the middle of the dirt street and stared at Buck. 

"I don't think that's such a good idea, right now, Sheriff, seeing as how the trial's still goin on." Vin stopped behind Charlie and answered for Buck. His hand had been placed on the grip of his gun, strapped to his side, as he glanced over his shoulder at the elder judge. He hadn't liked the situation and had been waiting for Charlie to show his hand, he just hadn't expected it to be just yet.

Scoffing, Charlie nodded over his left shoulder, to where he had caught Jesse, Chris and JD walking 50 feet back and on the other side of the street. "But, he can talk to her all he wants?"

Vin flashed a look back at Jesse and caught the eye of the outlaw and nodded to Chris as a motion to stop walking. "Well, he ain't talkin' to her right now. Keep it movin'."

Jesse caught sight of Lyla and Mary, on the boardwalk before panning to see Sheriff Drake and Judge Carson, standing in the middle of the street with Vin and Buck. As Chris placed a hand on his arm to halt him, Jesse noticed Vin's right hand on his gun and squinted for a better look. They had stopped a good distance back so that he couldn't hear what was going on. His eyes focused on the Sheriff and felt his breath catch as Charlie stepped towards Mary and Lyla. "Stay away from her!"

Chris had taken a step in front of Jesse, keeping his hand on Jesse's arm. He kept his eyes on Charlie and turned his body to emphasize the fact that he had his gun on and was quite ready for a fight. He gave the sheriff a clever smirk with a taunt of a nod and waited for Charlie to make his move. "You can talk to her after the trial, Sheriff. Start somethin right now, it'll end badly, for you." He glanced past the sheriff, over at Mary and Lyla.

Lyla seemed to be exasperated from the situation and frantic to remove herself from it. Shaking her head as Mary asked her if she would prefer to go back to her room, Lyla kept her voice down as she answered that she wanted to be there for her husband. 

Josiah walked up behind Mary and placed a hand on Lyla's shoulder, whispering something in her ear, to calm her. He had been following along, behind the women and kept watch over them, should anything like this arise. Placing himself between Lyla and the street, Josiah carefully eased the two women to continue walking while he kept watch of the standoff in the street. 

Judge Carson grabbed Charlie by the arm and pulled him back, in attempt to contain his client. "Leave it alone, son. This'll be over, soon. There is no concrete proof to that boy's story. This judge is just stirrin' dust. Let's go." The old man had remained silent and confident in his original findings and knew Judge Travis could not overrule him. 

Charlie huffed and sneered over at Chris before turning and walking towards the Grainery. 

JD watched Jesse's expression and body language as they followed Judge Carson and Charlie into the Grainery. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Judge Travis sat at the desk he used as the bench and banged the gavel to start court. "This court is now in session. I have been in contact with the sheriff in Castlerock, who was kind enough to send over a deputy, to Echo, and examine the wall of the jail, Sheriff McCall's autopsy photos and question a few citizens of the town. I have no doubt Judge Carson's records are in tact but, I prefer to have an outside source, to corroborate the story. They have wired their findings to me, just a few minutes ago." He had begun to expand his decision when Carson stood and glared at him, for the subtle accusation that his records had been tampered with.

"You conduct your own investigations after asking me to join you for this trial?! May I remind you, Judge Travis, you have no jurisdiction for a trial I have already ruled on." Judge Carson slammed a heavy fist down on the table he and Sheriff Drake sat at. "This is a mockery, sir!"

The gavel banged on the desktop, loudly, as Judge Travis demanded order. "Sit down, sir. I've gone through your records, Judge Carson, and have found a few details misdiagnosed. The medical examiner, from Salt Lake City, ascertained that the bullet from Jesse's Colt" reaching up to grab the outlaw's gun from the top right corner of his desk, and held it up for the court to see, "couldn't have made the size of the wound your report indicated. He then verified the exact diametre, he recorded in his own, personal records, that the size needed to make the hole of the wound came from this gun." He put down Jesse's gun with an audible thud and picked up Sheriff Drake's .44 Colt.

"There ain't no way!" Charlie boomed his anger and shot up to snarl at the judge, who only sat at his bench and looked thoroughly unruffled by the outburst.

With one slap of the gavel on the table, Judge Travis retorted firmly, "sit down!" His eyes remained on the sheriff as Chris placed a hand on Charlie's shoulder and reiterated for the man to take his seat. "However, as the only person who could shed some light on what truly happened that day, be it self-defense or not, is gone, I am in a position to only debate the original ruling of this case. Therefore, Judge Carson, I am overruling your decision to hang this young man, Jesse McCall, and I am sentencing him 15 years in Yuma Prison." Looking from Sheriff Drake to Jesse, sitting stoically at the next table, he half-expected the young man to protest as he watched Jesse's mouth fall open from shock.

 

Continued one final time.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to Rachel Nevins and my lil sis, Emily, for the help with the final chapter! I greatly appreciate it!

"NO!" Lyla shrieked and buried her face in her hands as the overwhelming force of tears cascading down her ashen cheeks. She could feel Mary's arms around her and Chris to the other side, whispering in her ear that it would be alright but nothing seemed to calm her. Shaking her head, Lyla became more distraught as the past few weeks weighed heavily on her. 

Jesse sat in his chair and stared at the judge, calmly. He was numb and couldn't move. Turning his head, slightly, he looked over at Ezra, who was just as mystified as he. "What about Lyla? What's gonna happen to her? She can't go back, with him." 

"Fear not, young man. I assure you, your lovely bride will be taken care of." Ezra patted Jesse's shoulder and then stood up. "Your honour, may I inquire as to why there were no closing statements?" He met eyes with the judge and then glanced over his left shoulder, at a tear-ridden Lyla, sobbing on Mary's shoulder. 

"You may. And it is my official power to cut to the chase, when I feel it necessary. My ruling stands, Mr. Standish. Sit down." The gavel banged again as Judge Travis eyed Ezra, daring him to say something out of order. "In the ruling of Sheriff Drake being held in contempt of court, his bond will be set at $20. Mister Larabee, Mister Wilmington, please escort the sheriff to jail where he might arrange for release." The judge sat firmly in his chair and contained his anger. He had had enough of playing games with the visiting judge and sheriff and taking on a case that had become a total sham. His eyes moved to Lyla and watched as Chris stood from consoling the young woman.

Charlie shoved Judge Carson aside as the elder man leaned over to speak to him. "Hell no! I ain't leavin' here without my sister! That brat," pointing over to Jesse, "brainwashed her into thinkin' he loves her." Charlie pointed an angry finger over at Jesse as the young man finally was able to stand up and face him. Ignoring the banging gavel and the presiding judge's yell to to have order, Charlie made a step in Lyla's direction and was stopped abruptly as he came face to face with Buck and Josiah.

Seeing his wife's emotional state, Jesse gathered his anger and focused it on the sheriff, ready to shove through Ezra to protect her, if needed. In catching Ezra's eye and watching him shake his head in discouragement, he shrugged against it. "She's a grown woman, Charlie! Ain't no way I'm lettin' her leave with you!" Jesse growled as Judge Travis banged the gavel and Ezra stood up to contain his client.

Lyla stopped her sobbing and shifted, panting and placing a hand on her stomach. "I don't feel well. Can we please go?" Sitting back and reaching for Mary's hands, she felt weak and ill and just wished to get away from the screaming and the trial that had just condemned her husband to prison. "Mister Tanner? Please take me back to my room?" Turning and reaching for the man behind her, Lyla ignored the calls to her from her brother and Jesse and, instead, allowed Vin to help her to her feet and escort her to the door. Nathan followed behind Vin while Mary made her way to speak to Judge Travis, who now waved her over with a questionable look.

Bending close to her father in-law, Mary explained that Lyla wasn't feeling well and wished to return to her room. 

The judge nodded and banged the gavel hard on the desktop. "Order! Mister Larabee, please remove Sheriff Drake from this courtroom. I am doubling his fine of contempt to $40. He will remain in a cell until he's had time to cool off. I will not have you interrupt my court, again, young man. Mister McCall," sighing and looking to Jesse, who silenced himself upon hearing the gavel banging, "the marshal's stage will be here to collect you, in three days. At which time, you will be transported to Yuma Prison to serve no less than five years, with good behaviour. After such period, I will review your case for possibility of parole. I suggest you use your time wisely, young man. Mister Standish, Mister Dunne, take your prisoner into custody." With a final bang of the gavel, he ended the court session and stood up to leave.

"What about Lyla? She can't go back with him. He'll make her life Hell! Please, Judge!" Jesse's voice filled with concern over his distraught wife and not for himself. He hadn't struggled as JD placed the cuffs on him. The numbness had returned but the shock never left him. Jesse turned his head to look at the open door that Vin had escorted Lyla out of. His heart sank. He felt grateful that the judge gave him life instead of a noose but not so happy knowing that he wouldn't be able to see his wife for 15 years.

Charlie fought against Chris and shoved Buck back as the two men grabbed him to be cuffed. "She's my baby sister, damn it! I'm the only family she has left. She's leavin' with me."

Judge Carson, who had sat quiet, with a quizzical look, now stood and approached Judge Travis. "I demand to know the reason for your abrupt ruling and why the closing arguments were forgone." The older gentleman glared at his successor as he leaned on the table, between them. He narrowed his eyes and watched Oren's expressions change. "You have no authority to overrule my findings. This shady dealing of a courtroom will be the first on my list to have you removed as a judge, Travis."

Oren Travis paused in his collection of papers and personal belongings to dump them in a pile, on the table and retrieve the same wire the medical examiner had sent to him, not minutes before the resuming of trial and holding it up for the elder man to see. "My 'shady' courtroom just corrected your misuse of the justice system, Mister Carson. This same wire, from the Salt Lake City Medical Examiner's office informed me of tampering with facts in evidence to see that Jesse be hanged for a crime that was not proven. Furthermore, your one-sided trial to convict Jesse has been under investigation by the Judiciary Committee. That young man would have been the fourth victim of your misuse of the Judicial System. Therefore, on the grounds that your first ruling has been dismissed, by the Committee, this young man was granted an appeal. Until which time as unhampered evidence has been found, proclaiming his innocence, he is remanded to Yuma Prison for aiming a weapon at a man of the Law with intent to pull the trigger. The court is in adjourn. I suggest you find yourself a good lawyer for the Committee. Good day, counselour." He then made his way over to where Jesse stood, staring back at him with a calmness he had shown so many attackers. "Jesse, I will speak to Lyla. If the young lady wishes to stay, she will be well accommodated here, for as long as she likes. If not, I cannot force her. Gentlemen." Nodding to JD and Ezra to escort Jesse out of the building.

Jesse only nodded and fought back the anguish in his throat. "Thank you."

~~~~~~~~~~

Chris and Vin sat at a corner table of the Saloon and ate in silence, reflecting on the chaos on the day. The sun hadn't even bothered to go down yet, both men were physically exhausted from the trial and repercussions. Chris sighed and sat back as Judge Travis walked up and calmly asked to join them. He nodded as the weary judge pulled out the vacant chair, at the table, and sat down. "Some rulin', today." Shoveling another piece of roast into his mouth and chewing, glanced over at the older man with a tilt of his head. 

"Not one of my usual ones." Judge Travis waved Inez over, for her to bring him a beer and a meal. "That young outlaw took it better than some of the other grown men I've sentenced. I suppose the young lady had other expectations of the outcome."

Vin nodded as he chewed a bite of bread. "She's pretty upset. Had to pick her up and carry her upstairs. Poor thing passed out, at the door to the hotel. Nathan's with her, now." Chewing and swallowing a bite of potato, he reached for his glass and took a gulp of beer before setting the glass back down on the table. The memory of holding Lyla in his arms and carrying her up the stairs, with the help of Nathan, was still fresh in his mind. "Mary said she didn't eat anything this noon and barely touched anything for breakfast, this morning."

Chris thought about the judge's ruling and explanation as he chewed his next bite. "Ezra took Jesse back to his cell said Jesse was very quiet and only spoke up once to ask about the stage. He wasn't relieved to be spared from the noose but rather a bit hurt he didn't get that punishment."

"He's been putting himself through Hell tryin' to talk himself out of him bein' the one that pulled the trigger that killed his pa. That tends to take a toll on a man. I reckon lettin' him live doesn't help all that much, especially when he has to live with never knowin' who really killed the sheriff." Vin sat back and sipped his beer. 

Judge Travis sighed as Inez placed a beer and a plate of food down in front of him. "I'll keep close watch on Mister McCall. He seems like a level-headed young man. The warden is a friend of mine, and it might be possible to work something out for him to work in the warden's program. That'll keep him out of general population, in case anyone knew of the incident in Echo. That is the extent of my reach, though. Jesse'll have to do his time, just like anyone else."

Chris nodded. "Jesse's a good kid. Been through Hell. He might appreciate any chance he can get." He glanced over as the judge took a bite of carrot and then looked past him to see Nathan walk into the Saloon and spot Chris. "Nathan. How's Lyla doin?"

Nathan sighed and removed his hat as he sat down, opposite the judge. "She's fine. A bit dehydrated and weak from not eating but, she's more concerned with how Jesse's doin. Been askin' when she can talk to him. I came to bring her some sandwiches and build her strength back up. She can barely stand on her own." He stood again to order food from Inez before excusing himself from the table to wait for the food.

"I'll have a talk with her, after she eats something. I'd like you seven to be on hand for the next few days. Just in case Judge Carson and the sheriff try something." Judge Travis took a bite of roast and chewed, thinking about the day's events. 

~~~~~~~~~~~

Lyla brushed her long, wet hair. A bath had felt so nice, after a restless nap. She sat at the small dressing table and vanity, by the window, her face felt the warmth of the sun on the window. Small birds tried their best to cheer her up with their tiny songs but couldn't manage even a faint smile. She faced away from the door, not wanting to remember where she was. Lyla felt a prisoner in her own freedom as the darkness seemed to crowd her more and more. Her clean dress had been dampened with the remnants of her bath and chilled her arms and legs with the slivers of wind that crept in through the cracks in the siding and window pane.

She paused as she listened to heavy footsteps, outside her door. Hard-soled shoes and no weapon gave her a shiver. The footsteps stopped just outside her door and soon after, a knock. "Who is it?" Lyla knew by the way they had walked that it hadn't been any of the seven men or Mary and it made her all the more uneasy.

A muffled voice, thick and heavy as the footsteps, came from behind the door. "Mrs. McCall, this is Judge Oren Travis. On your husband's request, I would like to speak to you."

"Jesse?" Lyla clutched the handle of her hairbrush and stood up. She faced away from the door and turned, using her free hand to feel for the side of the bed and then the wall and finally the door as she had made her way across the room. Feeling for the doorknob and turning it, she cracked the door open and listened for a moment. "Jesse sent you?" Lyla swallowed. Her heart beat loudly.

Judge Travis breathed and lowered his tone to speak to her. "Yes. He asked me to have a word with you, about your decision of residence. May I come inside?" His voice softened and displayed no indicators of false testimony.

Lyla nodded and opened the door to invite him in. "Please." She listened to his footsteps and the soft wrinkling of his clothing as he stepped into her room. She had so many things she had wanted to say to the judge, some begging him not to send her husband away, some demanding he change his decision but, she kept quiet and listened to him walk over to the wooden desk, next to the tall wardrobe, and turn the deskchair around to sit. Closing the door and trying her best to move about the room she had been captive in, to sit on the settee, next to the bed.

Judge Travis watched and waited for her to sit before he sat down. "Mary mentioned to me that you weren't feeling well, during the sentencing. I hope you've recovered."

Smiling, nervously, Lyla nodded. "Yes. Thank you."

"Now," Judge Travis shifted on the chair, "how has your stay, in town, gone? Are you being treated well?"

Lyla nodded. "Yes. It's been fine. Mister Larabee and Mister Tanner have been very nice, to me. Mister Sanchez reads to me and Mister Wilmington is quite the conversationalist, at meals." She paused and gathered the strength to say what she had wanted to, for so long. "I want to be with my husband, Judge Travis. Jesse hasn't done anything wrong. Why are you doing this, to him?" She pleaded with him but ultimately knew the judge wouldn't relent his findings. Tightening her mouth and refraining from tears, Lyla found herself listening to the judge's actions more than his words. She had a rough time figuring him out, as he wasn't like Mary, at all. 

Oren sighed and sat back, in his chair. "Young lady, I gave my verdict, not to punish Jesse, but to help him think about his actions. Granted, he is a well-behaved young man for his reputation; however, loaded or not, son of a sheriff, or not, Jesse aimed a weapon at a man of the law, with intent to pull the trigger. That is a jailable offense, here, or could have lead up to a hanging. Whether or not, it was his bullet that claimed the life of Sheriff McCall, or not, has yet to be concluded. Jesse knows that. Right now, though, he chooses to focus on your well-being. Mister Larabee and Mary have both agreed that you would be well cared for, if your decision is to remain here. Mary has offered to help brandish employment, if you so choose, or to help you further your education. Mister Standish has also chipped in and will work with you for accommodations. The other options, of course, may not be to your liking. As you've stated, Sheriff Drake would see your privileges expired. Perhaps, another place, you might express to reside, until you and Jesse can be reunited?" He watched her shake her head slightly but said nothing.

"What would you have concluded if Sheriff McCall did fire his own weapon at Jesse? You heard him tell the court how mean he was." Lyla calmed herself enough to ask the question that had weighed on her mind for most of the week.

Sighing in thought, Judge Travis shifted. "Had Jesse waited, self defense would have been another ruling. Since he was the first to aim his weapon, that puts Jesse at fault."

Lyla hung her head in defeat. "I want to be with my husband."

This time, it was the judge's turn to shake his head. "Yuma is no place for a delicate woman."

"Then, arrest me, also. Put me behind bars because wherever I go, now, will be a jail I cannot escape from." Raising her head and staring forward, not knowing that she met his gaze, Lyla assessed her own situation. "You see a good but misguided youth in need of correction. I see you are taking away the only person who let me feel safe and comfortable with who I am. I am no more free here than I am in Echo. I have no other family of my own. I cannot and will not burden Jesse's mother with my misfortune."

He could see the faint spark of courage, in her eyes. It had grown brighter as the moments passed. "You have done nothing wrong."

"I have." A tear slid down her cheek and she made no effort to wipe it away. "I'm blind."

~~~~~~~

The marshal's stage pulled into town just after one in the afternoon. It stopped in front of the telegraph office and a tall, barrel-chested man with an old '73 Winchester rifle stepped out and looked around. Brushing himself off and making his way to the small jail, he called back to the driver to wait. Opening the door and looking at both empty desks, on either side of the door, his brown eyes fell on the young man, sitting on the bed, in his cell. "Where's the sheriff?" His deep, gravelly voice filled the room.

"Ain't no sheriff. Just seven men." Jesse never betrayed his calm demeanour as he stared up at the man. 

A bushy brown mustache flinched as the man snorted. "Lookin' for a man named Larabee." He hadn't been impressed with the lack of welcome, nor the prisoner's expression. Marshal Cain Johnson had been one to command attention when he entered a room. A decorated man, well versed in military tactics and the apprehension of dangerous criminals had played to his war-hero ego. He had been a high-ranking captain in Sherman's army and tended to look down on those who opposed his line of thinking.

Jesse raised an eyebrow at the man. "Try the saloon."

"You sassin' me, boy?" Johnson gripped the barrel of his rifle tightly.

Jesse's tone hadn't changed. "Nope." 

JD cleared his throat as he stood in the doorway, behind Johnson. "Can I help you, Mister?"

"That's Marshal Cain Johnson, boy." Johnson turned around and eyed JD with an unimpressed look. "You Larabee?"

JD shook his head and then smiled, holding out his hand to properly greet the Marshal. "No, sir. My name's JD Dunne." The smile faded as he was met with an equal grunt and glare as Johnson stared down his nose at the young lawman.

The marshal cleared his throat with a loud growl and demanded to see Chris Larabee so that he could collect his prisoner and head to the next town to collect some failed bank robbers. Leering as JD stumbled back outside and ran to fetch Chris, he then turned around and sized up the young outlaw, in the cell. "Take some girl's doll?"

"Nope."

"That's right. Little boy like you killed a man."

"The sheriff." Again, Jesse's calm demeanour didn't waiver as his deadpan stare remained on the marshal, now standing in the middle of the office part of the jail. Staring at the older man hadn't helped in figuring out what the next three days travel would endure but, he found solace that it would be the best part of the next 15 years. Jesse had doubted very highly that Judge Travis would keep his word and grant him parole in five years.

Familiar footsteps on the boardwalk hinted Chris hadn't wasted any time making his way back to the jail to greet the marshal. Rounding the corner and stepping into the jail, Chris stopped introduced himself to the imposing lawman. "I'm Chris Larabee."

Marshal Johnson turned and half expected to see another young greenhorn, standing beside him. "Marshal Cain Johnson. I'm here for my prisoner." He made no attempt to be cordial to the man he had read stories about, nor had he cared that Chris had been considered one of the fastest gunmen in the territory. Johnson reached into the small pouch clipped to his belt, behind his back, and retrieved his personal pair of cuffs for Jesse to wear. "Hurry it up. I wanna keep my deadline." He sneered as Chris moved to retrieve the keys from the desk, to the right of the door.

"Mr. Larabee, can I say goodbye to Lyla, first? Please?" Jesse stood at the bars and silently begged to see his wife before they left.

Once again, JD stood in the doorway, watching. Looking to Chris and nodding, JD volunteered to escort Lyla over to see her husband one last time. He turned and hurried over to the restaurant, where Lyla and Mary had been having tea.

Chris grabbed the keys from the top drawer and made his way over to Jesse's cell, with Marshal Johnson right behind him. Chris shoved the key into the lock and turned it, making a loud clanking sound and then a twisted screeching noise as he opened the door for the marshal to cuff Jesse. He had wanted to say something but didn't have the opportunity to formulate words. He knew Jesse was guilty of pointing a weapon at his father but felt bad that he was being punished for stopping his abuser. Even though, it hadn't been proven it wasn't Jesse who pulled the trigger.

Placing the iron cuffs around Jesse's wrists and tightening them, Marshal Johnson hadn't cared to hear about a woman coming to say "goodbye" to the man she loved. In his eyes, criminals didn't love anyone or anything but themselves and used anyone and anything to further their egos. Grabbing Jesse's left arm and shoving him in front, towards the door, he grunted a "thanks" over to Chris and didn't bother to wait for Chris' reaction before shoving his prisoner out, into the street.

Jesse dug in his heels and did his best to delay the marshal from hurrying him into the stage as he caught sight of Lyla, JD and Mary hurrying to see him. "Lyla!"

"Jesse!" Lyla had hold of JD's hand and walked between Mary and JD. She stopped, to determine where the call came from. 

Grunting and growling, Marshal Johnson pulled Jesse close to him and snarled into his ear, "I ain't got time for your sissy stuff, inmate."

Shrugging out of the man's heavy grasp and turning to face his captor, Jesse growled back, "And I ain't leavin' without sayin' goodbye to my wife."

"Aw, should we get a tintype made, for her?"

Jesse held back his anger as Lyla grew closer. "Won't do no good. She's blind, you oaf." Jesse turned back and took two steps towards them. Raising his arms to encircle them around Lyla, they hugged and kissed. He whispered something in her ear that had made her cry as he held her tightly. "I have to go now, love. You'll be alright, here. I promise. They're good people here. It won't be that long til I can hold you, again." He kissed her lips, gingerly. "I love you, Lyla McCall."

Tears streamed down her cheeks leaving damp red lines. "Take me with you, Jesse."

Jesse shook his head. "I can't, darlin. You'll be safe, here." With a final sincere kiss, Jesse released himself from her and turned back to the marshal and Chris, waiting at the door to the stage. "Mister Larabee," stepping closer to the stage and spoke quietly. "I can't ask you to protect her but, I'd appreciate it." He tried to hide his nervousness as he hadn't really wanted to be that close to the stage bound for Yuma Prison. 

Buck and Vin strode up the walk and stopped in front of the jail. Their gun hands resting on the grips.

"Get a move on, inmate." Johnson shoved Jesse towards the door of the stage. He grew more impatient with every minute wasted by Jesse blubbering over leaving his blind wife.

Chris swallowed and glanced over Jesse's shoulder to a weeping Lyla and nodded his answer. "I give you my word, Jesse."

Nathan and Ezra had made their way outside of the saloon and stopped, just beyond the swinging doors, to watch as the marshal collected his prisoner. Ezra leaned against the support beam and toyed with a deck of cards while Nathan looped his thumbs around his gunbelt and shook his head. Neither had thought Jesse deserved such a steep sentence yet, they could not confirm he had been completely innocent. Nathan knew all too well the anger that came with being oppressed and didn't really blame Jesse for retaliation. Ezra shared the same sentiment though, his pride had been on the mend for having lost the case.

Josiah sat reading his book of scriptures, just outside of the restaurant, where he had been having a cup of coffee, and glanced up at the marshal's stage. He stood and placed the book down, on the table as he stepped to the edge of the walk and squinted to see the exchange of words between Jesse and the grumpy marshal. He caught Buck's eye, from across the street and looked away, almost upset at the sight that unfolded. His heart went out to Lyla as he watched her whole world collapse in front of her and there was nothing she could do to hold on to steady ground.

As Jesse nodded and stepped toward the open door to the wagon, a shot from a double barreled rifle rang out and ricocheted off of the door, not a foot and a half from Jesse's right arm. He had jumped. He had remained calm all this while and had jumped at the sound of a gunshot. Ducking and looking around to find the shooter, Jesse's heart pound in his chest. "Charlie," he panted to himself.

"Jesse!" 

Crouching down, as the rest of the group had done out of reflex, Jesse spun around and realised Lyla had still been within reach. "Lyla!" He had taken a step back towards her when the marshal grabbed his arm and snarled for him to get into the wagon. "I ain't leavin'!" In the time it had taken for him to stand up, turn around and come face to face with the ill-tempered marshal, Jesse had reached across and grabbed Johnson's revolver from it's holster, on the marshal's right hip, and pointed it at him.

"JD, get Mary and Lyla inside!" Chris called and drew his gun as he gazed at the tops of the buildings, across the street, searching for the disgraced sheriff.

Grabbing Lyla by the waist, as she had resisted to leave without knowing where Jesse was or if he was alright, he struggled to get her onto the boardwalk. Mary had been on the other side of him, trying to also calm Lyla down when the second shot rang out, this time, barely missing Mary's foot.

Lyla screamed and kicked for JD to let go of her. She was able to break free as they both fell to the ground, as a result of her flails. Scrambling to her hands and knees, she crawled ahead and felt her way across the street as another shot rang out. Lyla paused to ball herself up and scream in terror for her husband. She had been curled up in the middle of the street, exposed and easy prey.

Chris waved Josiah and Vin to search the buildingtops for the sniper while Buck and Nathan searched the boardwalks as he, himself, made his way over to where Mary crouched, just inside the sheriff's office. "You alright?" Keeping himself low, he quickly checked her for injuries.

Mary nodded and shifted as she spotted Lyla, in the street. "I'm fine. What about Lyla?"

Chris finally looked over to find Lyla still huddling in a tight ball, in the middle of the street and called to JD, who had done his best to make it over to her, with no success. "JD! Get Lyla outta the street!" Drawing his gun and, crouching low, he made his way back to the side of the wagon, where Marshal Johnson stood and surveyed the buildings. "Marshal, you might wanna get Jesse outta town. We draw the shooter out, into the open and away from innocent people, my men and I can take care of it."

Jesse watched JD crawl closer to Lyla, drawing his gun. "No," he mumbled under his breath and swallowed as pushed himself out, from under the cover of the horses of the stage, and ran himself into JD, toppling them both while sifting JD's other gun out of his holster. "He's mine!" Jesse growled at the younger man, pinning him to the ground. "You get her outta here. I got Charlie." He stood and turned to raise his head and voice to the skyline. "Your fight's with me, Charlie! Leave Lyla outta this! You hear me, Charlie?" He had forgotten almost completely about the handcuffs on his wrists, as he clutched JD's gun in his left hand. He aimed it at the tops of the buildings and desperately searched for his brother in-law.

Firing another shot and ducking out of sight, he could hear his sister screaming and knew he had missed his target. "I hear ya, McCall! She's my sister and you turned her against me!" Charlie's ominous voice came from everywhere and nowhere as he had remained hidden since witnessing the other five men pan out to look for him.

Screaming out of fear and frayed nerves, Lyla flinched at the hands that grabbed her and then the voice at her ear, telling her what JD was trying to do. "What's going on? Where's Jesse? Tell me!" Lyla felt pushed and pulled in every direction and stumbled to regain control of herself as JD helped her up, onto the boardwalk and into the nearest business.

"He's fine, ma'am. He asked me to get you outta the street. You're safe, now." JD knelt down, beside her, as she sat down on the floor, under the window.

Lyla shook her head and fought back the sobs. "Why is Charlie doing this?"

Shaking his head, JD didn't know what or how to tell her what he didn't know. "I don't know, ma'am. Are you hurt, anywhere?"

"No. Is Jesse alright?"

JD didn't answer and only stared at the armed prisoner, still standing in the middle of the street, searching for the assailant.

After the second time of hearing no answer, Lyla's mind began racing with voices of Jesse's demise. "Jesse!" She had started to get up but was held down by the youngest of the seven men. "Let me go. He needs me." Her hands sweat and fisted into her dusty skirt and her ears rang with screams from other patrons and gunshots. Her breath caught and skipped in her chest, wondering what was going on and feeling utterly helpless.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The marshal had been standing silent, clutching the stock of his rifle and staring carefully at each window and building outline that he could see. "Who the Hell is so trigger-happy?" His mouth tightened as the lack of shadow or movement shaved off pieces of his temper.

Chris followed the marshal's eyes with his own. "Former sheriff of Echo. The young lady is his little sister and Jesse's new bride. We find him alive, you can have him."

"Two for the price of one, huh? Sounds like an interestin' trip."

Exhaling his frustration, Chris cocked his gun and raised it to shoulder level. "Sheriff Drake, you don't have to do this! Jesse's going to prison! No need for you to go with him!"

"He took my last piece of family I had and turned her against me! Got no job to go back to, no family! He deserves to swing, not go to jail!" Charlie shouted from where he sat, corned in an upstairs bedroom of the hotel/saloon. "His Pa damn near ruined everything and then, that brat had to come along and poke his nose where it wasn't wanted." Charlie got to his feet and carefully walked towards the door of his room and peeked out, into the hall, listening for footsteps of on of the other seven. His heart pounded in his chest and his breaths came in short intervals. He could hear Jesse shout something to him from the street.

Jesse turned and glanced over his shoulder, listening. "You had no reason to kill him, Charlie! He was your friend and my Pa!" Dividing his attentions between the empty street, where JD and Lyla hid and Charlie's disembodied voice came from. He could feel the ground start to give way, underneath him as the moment became more and more surreal. He had wanted to be vindicated. He wanted to be free from his sentence but most of all, he had wanted to know why his father was killed over something so petty and dastardly.

Charlie made his way down the hallway, to the side door, cracking it open and checking for gunmen. Making his way down the stairs, he focused on the relief of aiming and pulling the trigger, one last time, killing the last of the McCall men. If he had to go down, as well, that was the way he had wanted to go. Pausing at the corner of the building across the alley, Charlie took a breath and snapped a glance back at his target, still standing in the middle of the street, in cuffs. He had been a building down from the jail and on the same side of the street, which made it harder to be spotted. "All I wanted was to be able to support my family and myself. I tried several times to get that old fool, Bromley to listen to my side of things. Sloan couldn't take care of the town. Failed as a sheriff and a father. He got in my way, Jesse! Couldn't let him ruin everything. Not the way he destroyed his own family! Carson was the only one that saw it." Taking a deep breath and turning the corner, Charlie walked to the middle of the street and aimed his revolver at Jesse as the outlaw turned around to face his attacker.

"That's why you thanked me, back at the schoolhouse? Framed me for killin' my Pa." A shiver raced down Jesse's back yet, he remained collected in the face of danger.

"Call it a blessin' in disguise." Charlie sneered at the younger man as they stared at each other. "I liked him. I really did. But, he was gonna spoil my future. Kill the town with his drunken ramblings."

Jesse caught movement from the corner of his eye and turned to fire a warning shot at the marshal's left foot, stopping the inter-loafer from killing the mad sheriff. "He's mine." When he turned back to focus on Charlie, he could see the rage and hatred in the man that now held him at gunpoint. "Why aim at Lyla, Charlie? She's innocent. Ain't done nothin' wrong."

"You took her away from me, McCall. Stole my baby sister and turned her against me. After everything I did for her! You're just usin' her! Admit it!" A low growl started in Charlie's throat as his voice carried over the short distance. He was down to one last shot and fought to contain himself from pulling the trigger and being down with it.

Shaking his head and parting his lips to speak, both had been caught off-guard by a third voice, coming from Jesse's left. To his horror, Jesse turned to find Lyla calling for him and blindly running towards his voice. "LYLA!" His movements felt as if his boots were full of sand and he was running in quicksand as he started towards her before turning and firing back at the disgruntled sheriff that now aimed and fired at his own sister. Jesse had stepped in front of her as the bullet tore into his stomach, barely missing his major organs. His own bullet had caught Charlie in the chest, causing the sheriff to stand in shock before dropping his gun and falling to his knees and then face first, into the dirt.

Lyla screamed loudly as she felt Jesse's weight against her. Her hands were wet and he gasped for breath, in her arms, as they slipped to the ground. "Jesse?! What's happening?" Within seconds, the closeness of being surrounded by Chris, JD, Nathan and Vin was becoming unbearable and she gasped for air. Her eyes filled with tears as strong, weathered hands lifted her to her feet and turned her around to sob into the chest of the man what held her. She was confused and scared and angry that her brother would do this. Pounding her fists into the strong, warm chest, Lyla screamed for her husband and demanded to know what was going on.

Ezra held on tightly to the young woman and refused to let go, even as she cursed and pounded on his chest. Stroking her hair and remaining silent, he waited for her to calm down before hushing his voice to speak to her. "Young Mister McCall will be just fine, my dear. Calm yourself. Mister Jackson will do everything he can to see that Jesse doesn't go anywhere without you."

Mary's heart ached as she watched Nathan and Buck carry Jesse up to Nathan's room while Chris and Vin examined Charlie's body. Her eye caught the marshal, closing the door to the cell of the wagon. Making her way over to him, she did her best to stop the shaking in her muscles before acknowledging him. "Marshal?"

Cain Johnson had softened his scowl and took a moment to watch Lyla and Ezra. He thought back to his own sister, in Maryland, and how fragile she had been from an early age. "I'll wire the judge for a pardon and tell him about the confession."

Mary nodded. "Thank you."

Cain didn't respond. His eyes still focused on the hysterical blind young woman.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Buck stood at the foot of the bed and rest arms against the tall wire footboard. He had been staring at Jesse's unconscious form for an hour. Nathan had finished and Josiah had prayed and now, all that was left to do was wait. Buck hated waiting. The helplessness tore at his gut as the remnants of Lyla's cries and pleadings pounded in his ears. He swallowed, dryly. It had been two days and not even a stir from the young man. Buck growled to himself. 

The door opened and slow, even steps made their way up to him.

"He ain't moved. Not one inch since Nathan dug the bullet out." Buck shook his head in silent anger.

Chris stood beside his friend. "The judge is on his way back to re-examine Jesse's case. Marshal Johnson told him he witnessed the confession, himself. He even put in for a pardon for Jesse." His eyes fell on Jesse's sleeping face.

"This kid, Chris. The cards were against him and he still chose Lyla's life over his own, like it was nothin. After all he's been through,-- all both of them have been through-- if Drake hadn't've confessed, this boy was gonna do someone else's time, all to keep the peace. A man like that doesn't deserve a bullet in the gut. Or, to be hangin' on Death's doorstep. That badge is a powerful thing but, it ain't worth ruinin' lives over." Buck's voice barely made it over a whisper. He was exhausted and hungry and needed a damned drink. But, not before he saw a sign of life in the young man that now lay motionless in bed.

Chris nodded. "He'll be alright, Buck."

 

End


End file.
